While You Were Sleeping
by loulou26
Summary: Felicity Smoak has a crush on her boss, Tommy Merlyn. The problem? He doesn't know she exists. After she saves his life, she is mistaken for his fiancee as he lies in a coma. Suddenly thrown into the arms of Tommy's family,The Queens, Felicity soon finds herself falling in love with his brother, Oliver. But when Tommy awakens, she finds herself in the worst predicament of her life.
1. Chapter 1

**_Chapter One_**

The sounds were soothing, the gentle beep of the monitors, the quiet clacking of keys. Absorbed in her task, Felicity Smoak pushed her glasses up on her nose and let her fingers fly over the keyboard.

"Earth to Felicity!" A hand slapped down on her desk, startling her out of her zone.

She looked up to see her colleague and friend standing in front of her. "What's up?"

Natalie shook her head in amusement, her short, brown curls bouncing around her face. "You didn't hear a word I just said, did you?"

Felicity smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. I'm on a deadline."

"Yeah, I can see the steam coming out of your ears." She laughed, sitting back in the chair opposite.

Felicity returned her attention to her computer. "What do you want, Nat?"

"Can't a girl just swing by to check in on her friend?"

"Sure, but your check-ins usually come with a little side project for me."

Natalie rolled her eyes. "Whatever, I brighten your day just by being in the room, Smoak. Don't deny it."

"I don't." She laughed. "But in the one month that you've been working in finance, you've come to me with more problems than my boss has in a year."

Felicity really hadn't known her that long, but she felt comfortable enough to call her a friend. They didn't really socialise much outside of work, other than meeting for the occasional coffee. But it was nice having another woman her own age around the offices.

Natalie pouted. "Well, I'm still finding my feet. Anyway, it's not my fault the IT department set the computers up to be impossible to navigate in this place."

"Hey!" Felicity threw her a mock glare. "I set those computers up."

"I rest my case. You're like…freaky level genius, Felicity."

"Flattery will get you everywhere. Fine, I'll come to your office in about half an hour."

"Excellent, you're the best." She said, standing up and heading for the door. Turning back for a moment, she grinned. "Oh, and bring coffee."

Natalie ducked out of the office before Felicity could even respond. Glancing at the clock on the wall, she smiled. It was almost nine am. _Speaking of coffee_. Snatching her purse off the back of her chair, she walked out the door with a spring in her step.

The coffee break room was empty when she arrived, which was unusual for the time of day. Most of the employees on her floor were just starting their workday and this was usually their first destination.

She shrugged and headed over to the coffeemaker. As the machine poured the silky liquid into her favourite mug, Felicity looked around the room. The festive cheer was in full swing today, with decorations strewn everywhere she looked.

Keeping an eye on the time, she sat down at one of the large tables, and took out her tablet. This was the best part of her day. The subject of her thoughts walked into the room and headed straight for the coffee machine.

She sighed, watching him over the rim of her mug. Tommy Merlyn. Stepson to the C.E.O of Queen Consolidated, Walter Steele. Every day he came in at nine am on the dot, and every day she found herself there too. The man was ridiculously good looking it almost wasn't fair. But that was as far as it went. She never spoke to him; she never introduced herself, she just didn't have the nerve. He was a complete stranger to her.

That was okay, because he never even so much as glanced her way, let alone spoke to her. She was always content to just sit back and watch as he poured himself a coffee, checked his phone, and then left to begin his day.

But today, something changed.

As if sensing her stare, Tommy glanced up at her and smiled. _Oh boy, look at those eyes,_ she thought to herself. Quickly averting her gaze, Felicity cursed as she slammed her mug down a little too hard and her coffee sloshed over the pristine, white table.

She heard a chuckle and then something white appeared under her nose. Silently cringing, Felicity looked up to see Tommy standing next to the table, holding a napkin out for her.

"Uh…thanks." She muttered, avoiding eye contact as she reached out and took it, and then set about cleaning up her mess.

"No problem." He replied and she was sure that if she'd been standing up, her legs would've buckled from hearing the deep, rich tone of his voice. Was there anything about the man that wasn't perfect? _Highly doubtful_, she thought.

She smiled again and he started to move back towards the door. But before he left, he nodded at her. "Merry Christmas."

She opened her mouth to reply, to tell him that she was Jewish, but nothing came out. Her vocal chords locked up and before she could clear her throat, he smiled and walked out of the room.

"You're beautiful. Would you like to have dinner with me sometime? I love you." She groaned as she banged her forehead against the table, mortified.

"Well, that went well." She said to herself, feeling her cheeks heat up as she gathered her belongings and stood up. "Not embarrassing at all, Felicity."

Her only saving grace, she thought as she returned to her office, was that he had no idea who she was and wouldn't even remember her blunder. Besides, he was probably used to girls falling all over themselves around him. Not that she was doing that, exactly. She had a little more pride in herself than that. But oh, he was so handsome and she was only human.

Felicity threw her hands over her face and moaned. She really needed to get a life. Pushing all thoughts of her boss' boss' boss out of her head, she returned her attention to her very important deadline.

She managed to get two sentences typed before her supervisor breezed into the room, holding some paperwork in his hand.

"Good morning, Felicity."

_I should just install a revolving door to this office,_ she thought.

"Morning, Alex. What have you got for me today?"

"I am nominating you for Employee of the Month." He said enthusiastically.

"Wow, really? Took you long enough." She laughed. She liked that she could do that with Alex. He was her boss, but he was also a great friend and had been there for her a lot in the past when she'd needed someone.

Alex opened the letter and began reading. "I, Alex Whitmore, hereby nominate Felicity Smoak for Employee of the Month. Felicity is hard working, always arrives early, and is never tardy. She is also willing to work holidays, even if she did work the previous one."

Felicity narrowed her eyes. "Alex, I'm not working tomorrow."

He put the paper down on her desk and leaned forward in his chair. "Felicity, I really need someone to monitor the servers tomorrow. The office is going to be closed and I need someone here."

"So get Celeste to do it. I'm not working Christmas Day."

Alex ran a hand through his thick, black hair. Though at forty-six years old, there was a slight peppering of grey coming in at the sides. "She can't, she has a family thing, Greg is out sick, and I promised my wife that I would actually be at home this year."

Felicity knew that he'd been having problems with his marriage lately but that didn't excuse him for this. She knew where he was heading and it left an unpleasant feeling in her chest. "So you came in here trying to bribe me with an Employee of the Month title that, quite frankly, I deserved a year ago?"

"No, the nomination is real and I would've given it to you whether you said yes or no."

"This stinks, Alex."

Alex sighed and covered her hand with his. "I know and believe me; I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important. But Felicity you're the only one…"

"Who's alone." She finished for him. The fact that it was true didn't mean that it didn't hurt.

"I know you and your mom are-"

Felicity held up a hand, unwilling to go down that road. "I will come in for a couple of hours but that's it."

Alex smiled at her, a hint of sadness in his eyes. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet."

He chuckled as he walked over to the door. "This is going to cost me a lot of donuts, isn't it?"

"You always were a smart man." She replied, getting back to work.

* * *

Felicity woke early the next morning, intent on getting to the office so that she wouldn't have to stay late. After an evening of comfort food and old movies, she was feeling a little better, but she couldn't deny that she wished she could just stay home. To lock herself inside her apartment and not come out until this holiday was over.

Since that wasn't an option, for today at least, she wrapped up warm and prepared to do battle with the elements. December in Starling City meant snow, and lots of it. She hated driving in it so most of the time, she walked to and from work.

"Hey, Felicity!"

Felicity groaned, and turned around to face her landlord's son, Cooper. She really didn't have the energy to deal with him this morning. "Hi."

"Where are you off to so early?" He asked, walking up to her. He was a year younger than she was and about the same height with curly, brown hair. Harmless enough, but she knew that he had a huge crush on her, and sometimes his definition of personal space was a little different to others.

"I'm going to work."

He looked puzzled. "On Christmas Day? Pop said that you could come over for lunch if you wanted to."

Cooper was a sweetheart really, and sometimes Felicity felt a little sorry for him. She reached out and rubbed his upper arm. "Thanks for the offer, but I have to go to work now."

"You want me to give you a ride?" He asked, pointing across the courtyard to his car. "I got her working now, she only backfires a little."

Felicity chuckled as she started walking. "I'm good thanks. Maybe you should keep working on it."

"Maybe we should go on a date?" He yelled after her.

She smiled and kept walking.

By the time she arrived at Queen Consolidated, the sun was out and reflecting brightly off the snow covered pavements. Since hardly anyone was working today, the main doors were locked, which meant she had to buzz through to security to let her in.

As she pressed the button, she spotted someone across the street getting out of a car. It was Tommy Merlyn, looking as fine as ever. Her mouth went dry when she realised that he was heading her way, and an instant replay of her embarrassment the day before flashed into her mind.

She relaxed a little when she saw that he was speaking to someone on his cell phone. Well, arguing seemed to be a better way of putting it. Good, at least she wouldn't have to talk to him this morning.

He was halfway across the road when she saw it. A red SUV had hit a patch of black ice and the driver was struggling to gain control. _Oh God_, she thought, her entire body freezing.

"Tommy!" She screamed, and before he had even looked up, Felicity was moving. She didn't allow herself any time to think, she just reacted. She ran faster than she knew she could and crashed into him, knocking him out of the way, as the SUV careened past them and smashed into a nearby-parked car.

Winded by the impact, Felicity tried to force some air into her lungs. "Are you okay?"

He didn't answer. She looked down to see that he was unconscious and blood was coming from the back of his head where he'd struck the concrete. "Tommy?"

The security guard came running out of the building as she frantically checked for a pulse. It was there, but weak. With numb fingers, she reached into her purse for her phone and dialled nine-one-one.

* * *

"Ma'am you can't go in there." A male nurse stopped Felicity from following any further as a team of nurses and doctors rushed Tommy through to the emergency room.

"Is he okay? Please I just-"

"Are you family?" He interrupted firmly. The expression on his face told Felicity that he wasn't going to believe anything she said.

"No, but I-"

"Then you need to take a seat over there."

As he ran off to help the rest of the team, Felicity stood in the middle of the waiting room wringing her hands. Beyond the two glass doors, she kept her eyes glued to Tommy's face until they pushed him out of sight.

She sighed. "Oh, I was gonna marry him."

Blinking tears away, Felicity took a seat in the waiting room, elbows resting on her knees as she dropped her head into her hands.

"Excuse me, Miss?" She glanced up to see a young nurse with a friendly smile standing in front of her.

"Yeah?"

"If you come with me, I can take you to him."

Immediately, she stood and followed her. She led her through the glass doors and down the hallway. After turning a few more corners and more hallways, she eventually pointed to another waiting room. _At least this one's empty_, Felicity thought.

"Take a seat, hun. As soon as they have him settled, I'll take you in to see him."

"Thank you," Felicity squinted at her nametag. "Joanne."

She was about to sit down when the nurse's eyes dropped to her arm. "Did you hurt yourself?"

"What? No I…" She glanced down and winced when she saw the blood around a small tear in her sleeve.

"Here, let me look at it."

She guided Felicity into a seat and then removed her jacket. There was a small gash, about an inch long, on her elbow and it was still bleeding.

"Wow, I didn't even feel that."

"Adrenalin can do that. It's going to need a couple of stitches, I'm afraid."

Felicity cringed. "Really? Can't you just put a band-aid on it?"

"I'm sensing you don't like needles." Joanne chuckled and shook her head. "It'll be okay. Come on, I'll make it painless, I promise."

* * *

It was a full hour before they finally allowed Felicity to see Tommy, and as soon as she stepped into the room, she felt sadness wash over her. He was just lying there, unconscious.

"Let him hear your voice, hun." Joanne said, gently squeezing her arm as she passed by to exit the room.

But once she was alone with him, Felicity had no idea what to say. She knew that there were conflicting theories about whether or not coma patients could hear voices, but she figured it was worth a try.

"Um…hi." She folded her jacket over her arms and took a few deep breaths. "I don't know if you can hear me, you probably can't. I prefer to think of…this as you being in a deep sleep, because you know, coma sounds…not fun."

She closed her eyes and sighed. "Sorry, I tend to ramble when I'm nervous. But everything's going to be okay, Tommy. I know it."

"Miss Smoak?" A doctor stood to her left, holding out his hand for her to shake. "I'm Doctor Rubin, the Queen family's personal physician."

"Please, call me Felicity. Is he going to be okay?"

"Well, Felicity-"

"Where is he? Where is my son?" A voice yelled and all eyes shot to the doorway. Felicity shrank back as Tommy's mom, stepfather, and younger sister, all barged into the room and headed straight for his bed. It was no secret that Moira and Robert Queen had adopted Tommy when he was younger. But as a mark of respect to Tommy's mother, who had died when he was only five years old, they never changed his surname.

"He looks so pale!" Thea cried, holding onto his hand.

"What the hell happened to him?" Walter, Moira's husband, asked. They had married a few years ago, after Robert Queen's ship had gone missing and he was presumed dead.

Moira turned to the doctor. "What's wrong with him?" she asked. Her voice was calm but Felicity could see the fear in her eyes.

Doctor Rubin patted her shoulder gently. "Moira, I'm afraid that Tommy is in a coma."

Thea gasped and started crying and Walter lowered his head. But Moira, she stood strong. "A coma. On Christmas Day?"

"Yes. But his vitals are all strong, his scans came back normal. His brainwaves are good. I believe he'll make a full recovery."

Moira pressed a hand to her mouth, unable to keep the tears from falling any longer. Walter stepped in behind her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"How did this happen?"

Felicity stepped forward and spoke for the first time since they'd come barging in. "A car hit a patch of black ice outside Queen Consolidated and almost hit him."

Suddenly she felt about two feet tall because every pair of eyes in the room landed on her.

"I'm sorry, who are you?" Moira asked, clearly confused.

"I'm-"

"She's his fiancée." Joanne said from the doorway. The room fell so silent that Felicity would've been able to hear a pin drop.

"Fiancée? Tommy's getting married?" Thea said, letting go of his hand to get a closer look at Felicity.

Feeling a little crowded, Felicity floundered. "No, no you don't understand, I'm-"

Walter frowned. "Why wouldn't he tell us?"

"Maybe he was busy?" Thea said.

"Too busy to tell his own mother he was getting married?"

Thea rolled her eyes. "He's only engaged, Walter, I'm sure he would've said something soon. Maybe he only just proposed."

The room felt smaller and Felicity grew alarmed as Moira pressed a hand to her chest. "Are you okay?"

"She has a heart condition, already had one attack this year." Walter said softly, cupping his wife's elbow.

"It wasn't an attack, Walter, it was an episode."

_Oh God_, Felicity thought. _What is going on?_

"Excuse me, doctor what is _she _doing in here?" The male nurse from earlier appeared, clearly unhappy that she was in the room.

"She saved his life." Joanne said with a dreamy smile on her face.

"What do you mean?" Moira asked.

"She ran into the street and pushed him out of the way."

Felicity groaned and rubbed a hand over her forehead, she was getting a headache.

"But then, how did he…?" Thea gestured to Tommy lying in the bed.

"He struck his head on the concrete when we landed. I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"You don't have to apologise." Moira smiled.

The male nurse glanced from Felicity to the doctor. "It's supposed to be family only."

Walter looked straight into her eyes and smiled. "She _is_ family."

That was enough for Felicity to finally break. "Okay, look I think there's been a-"

"I'm sorry. We haven't seen him for a while and we just didn't know he was seeing anyone." Moira interrupted, walking towards her with misty eyes.

Felicity opened her mouth but when Moira wrapped her arms around her and hugged her so tightly, she quickly closed it again.

"Thank you, dear. You saved my son's life."

"It's actually pretty cool," Thea said, crossing her arms. "I think it's romantic."

"I'm so happy he found a nice girl." Felicity could feel the panic kicking in as she reluctantly hugged Moira back.

* * *

When she could finally escape, she ran out of the room and grabbed a hold of Joanne's arm. "Why? Why did you say that?"

Joanne frowned. "Say what?"

Felicity shook her head as she gestured frantically at herself. "I'm not his fiancée!"

"What? Then why did you say you were going to marry him? In the waiting room."

Suddenly Felicity realised her mistake. "Oh jeez, I was talking to myself."

Joanne huffed. "Well next time you talk to yourself, tell yourself you're single and end the conversation."

"What do I do? She hugged me so tight, I…I couldn't tell her."

Joanne offered her a sympathetic smile and shook her head. She didn't have an answer.

Felicity had gotten herself into some real pickles before, but this was a new level even for her. How the heck was she going to get out of this one?

_**To Be Continued...**_


	2. Chapter 2

**_Chapter Two_**

Felicity was on edge, her whole body fraught with tension. Sitting in the hospital waiting room was bad enough, but sitting there with Moira, Walter, and Thea all staring at her kicked her anxiety up a notch.

They were waiting for Tommy's latest test to be completed, and the silence was killing her. The clock on the wall ticked away, and still no one said a word. She had opened her mouth so many times to tell them the truth. But every time she'd tried, Walter's earnest smile or Moira's heart condition stopped her. Then there was Thea. Tommy's little sister. She seemed so happy that her brother was engaged, and Felicity didn't have the heart to tell her otherwise.

Eventually, Moira leaned forward in her seat. "So Felicity, tell us how you met Tommy."

_Oh, crap!_ Felicity forced a smile as she tried to control her foot constantly tapping against the floor. "I uh, I work at Queen Consolidated."

Walter perked up at that piece of information. "Really? I can't recall seeing you there. Which department?"

"I work in the I.T department. I've only been there for a couple of years."

"Ah, so you're the brains of the operation." He replied with genuine admiration.

"No Sir, I'm just nobody. I mean, not _nobody_, obviously I'm somebody but-" She cut herself off, embarrassment heating her cheeks. She had a tendency to ramble when she was nervous, but they didn't seem particularly bothered by it. The smiles remained.

"So was it love at first sight?" Thea asked with a dreamy smile. She was only seventeen so Felicity could somewhat understand her excitement. "What was it that first drew you to him?"

_Double crap!_ "Uh…it was, it was his smile." For just a moment, Felicity allowed herself to reflect on what she'd first thought of Tommy Merlyn. "I saw him every day and the first thing I ever noticed about him was how beautiful his smile was. But there was also his kindness; he was always so polite when talking to people."

Moira practically puffed up with pride. "He was always such a sweet natured boy."

A knock on the door had them all turning their heads, and almost immediately, Thea ran over and hugged the man standing in the doorway.

Moira stood, holding her hand out for him to come closer. "Felicity, I'd like you to meet Mr Diggle. He's our bodyguard."

He nodded his head in greeting to her. "Ma'am."

"Hello, Mr Diggle."

"Please, call me John. I hear we have you to thank for saving Tommy. That was very brave, jumping in front of a car."

Felicity felt herself blush again, and looked away.

"Oh it gets better than that, Digg." Thea said, grinning. "Felicity and Tommy are engaged."

"I-" Felicity closed her mouth when Diggle smiled at her.

"Is that so? Well, congratulations Felicity."

She caught the look he gave Moira and wondered exactly what he was thinking. His shrewd appraisal of her also didn't go unnoticed. She was starting to feel like a fish on display in a big tank.

After the doctor had announced that Tommy was back in his room, the family returned to his bedside. Felicity hung back, feeling guilty for fooling them all. They all seemed so nice and accepting of her. But embarrassment now joined the list of reasons that she couldn't tell them the truth. Being revealed as just a girl with a crazy crush on her boss wasn't very appealing right now. She knew she'd have to tell them eventually, but for now, she just couldn't.

"How are you holding up?" Diggle asked, startling her as he came to stand next to her.

She looked through the window into Tommy's room. "I'm okay."

Again those eyes that seemed to see more than they let on, settled on her. "You know, Felicity, I think you saved someone else today too."

When she frowned, he chuckled. "Moira. She won't admit it, but she's vulnerable when it comes to her family. Her heart isn't what it used to be and I don't think she could handle another trauma to another one of her sons."

She knew what he was talking about, but didn't get a chance to reply. Diggle reached out and squeezed her arm gently, and then went back into the room.

* * *

By the time Felicity finally got home, it was already dark. After leaving the hospital, she'd gone back to work for a couple of hours, but she hadn't been able to focus on any of her assignments. Being the only one on her floor hadn't helped either. There was nothing to take her mind off the current predicament she was in.

As she stomped up the stairs to her apartment, Cooper appeared at the top. He was holding something in his hand and grinning at her. She let out a quiet sigh. "Cooper, it's been a really long day…"

"Tomorrow night. Eight o'clock."

She frowned as he started walking past her down the stairs. "What?"

He turned around; showing her the tickets in his hand. "New club opening tomorrow night in the Glades. Verdant."

"Huh." With a shake of her head, she carried on up to her apartment.

Felicity spent the rest of her evening watching bad TV and trying to figure out a way of telling the Queens the truth. She could still feel Moira's hug, so tight and so warm, it was hard to even think about admitting that she'd lied to them.

After tossing and turning for a couple of hours, her body completely restless, Felicity got up. Sleep would not come for her tonight. Thoughts of Tommy, of the situation she now faced, kept replaying in her mind. With a grunt, she threw back her covers and got dressed.

The hospital's I.C.U ward was quiet when she entered, the constant beeping of the machines the only sound. She rounded the nurse's station, nodded a greeting at the nurse currently sat there, and carried on into Tommy's room.

She stopped just inside the doorway, a quiet sigh escaping her at the sight of him. He looked as if he were sleeping, his chest rising and falling gently with each breath.

"Hi." She said softly, remembering Joanne's advice to let him hear her voice. "I uh…thought you might want a visitor."

She took a seat next to the bed and folded her hands in her lap to keep from fidgeting. "You're probably wondering what I'm doing here at two o'clock in the morning huh? Well, I thought I should introduce myself. My name's Felicity. Felicity Megan Smoak. I think it's important for you to know that your family thinks we're engaged."

She removed her glasses and massaged her temples. "I don't know how this happened. I don't know what to do. I wanted to tell them the truth, I really did. But your mom…she's quite a character. And Thea! She seemed so happy that we're engaged, I just…" She sat back with a sigh. "I just didn't want to hurt them."

"Another thing you should probably know about me, which you might've already noticed, is…I ramble. A lot. I also have a disturbing lack of brain-to-mouth filter too. It's gotten me into trouble more times than I can count."

Resisting the urge to reach out and hold his hand, Felicity leaned forward a little. His scent surrounded her, comforting, and yet she felt as if she shouldn't be here.

"I'm sorry that this happened to you. If I could trade places with you, I would. I mean let's face it; no one would really miss me." She winced. "That sounded bad. I mean, I'm not complaining, I have a pretty good life. My mother…well she's my mother. We don't really get along; I haven't seen her in almost a year. But I have my own apartment, and a job that I adore. It certainly has its benefits. Seeing you was always a good start to my day."

She shook her head, sadness filling her. "It's just…I don't have anybody that I can laugh with."

A humourless laugh escaped her. "You ever fallen in love with someone you've never even talked to? Probably not, you seem way too sensible for that."

The silence of the room was almost deafening, only the beeping of the machine next to Tommy's bed answered her.

"Have you ever been so alone that you spent the night confusing a man in a coma?"

Outside the room, Diggle shook his head in disappointment as he watched the young blonde-haired woman tentatively reach out and hold Tommy's hand.

* * *

Felicity woke with a start, shooting upright as she squinted against the bright sun coming in through the window. Her sleepy eyes fell on the man lying in the bed before her and she realised that she'd been lying with her head on his pillow.

Blinking away the last remnants of sleep, she checked her watch. "Oh frack!" She had just under an hour to get home, get changed and then head into work.

She stood and slipped her purse onto her shoulder, taking one last look at Tommy. "I guess I'll see you later."

"Felicity!" Thea's excited shriek startled her and she turned to see Walter, Moira, Thea, and Diggle all standing inside the doorway.

"We didn't know you'd be here, dear." Moira said with a warm smile.

"Oh well I, I couldn't sleep and…"

"You've been here all night?"

Felicity nodded, swallowing against the lump in her throat as Moira reached out to squeeze her arm.

"How is he today?" Walter asked, looking past her at Tommy.

"Oh uh, he has a little more colour. Looks a little more like…Tommy."

Thea leaned over her brother and smiled. "He does have more colour. That's good right?"

Felicity nodded. "I think so."

"Are you leaving?" Moira asked.

"Yeah I have a lot of work to get done today to make up for yesterday." She instantly berated herself for sounding so insensitive, but Moira didn't appear to notice. She nodded and smiled.

"Well before you go, we have something we would like to ask you."

Felicity felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand to attention. This could not lead to anything good.

"We didn't get to celebrate Christmas yesterday," Her eyes cut to Tommy, and then back to her. "And we would so very much enjoy your company this evening. If you wish to join us, that is."

Felicity stood dumbfounded for a moment. She was sure that Moira was about to reveal that she knew the truth. But she hadn't been expecting this. "Oh, that's so sweet. But I…I'm Jewish."

Her flimsy excuse was no barrier for Moira Queen. She frowned, amused. "That's hardly a problem dear. But I understand if you don't want to, this is as new for us as it is for you. I imagine it's all a little overwhelming."

_You have no idea_, Felicity thought. "Just a little."

"Oh you have to come, Felicity. It would be so great! Plus Oliver will be there too." Thea said, her eyes shining.

"Oh, that's right. You haven't met Oliver yet, have you?" Moira said.

"No, not yet." She'd heard of him, of course, who hadn't? His face had been plastered all over the news last year when he'd returned.

"So what do you say?" Moira asked, her expression hopeful.

"I'll think about it."

Moira nodded. "That's all I ask."

* * *

_This is a bad idea, Felicity. A very, very no good, bad idea._ Yet here she was, stepping out of her car and gawking up at the very large and imposing Queen mansion. She had no idea what to expect, and she wasn't even sure if she was too late or not. But after finishing work earlier, sitting at home alone with nothing for company but a microwave meal for one, the allure had kicked in. Her eyes kept glancing at the address on the card that Walter had given her before she'd left she hospital.

She had ignored the attraction at first, shoving the thought way out of her mind as she'd turned the tray of what was supposed to be food around. It wasn't appetising at all. Even with the TV on, the apartment was too quiet. She hated it. So on impulse, she'd grabbed her coat and car keys, and hurried out the door before she could change her mind.

An impulse that she was now regretting. Halfway up the long driveway to the house, Felicity stopped. What was she doing? She shouldn't be here. She didn't belong in this world.

She was about to head back to her car when she heard her name. Turning to her right, she saw Mr Diggle approaching her with a welcoming smile.

"You made it. Moira told me that you might stop by. How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay, thanks."

They began walking towards the house at a slow pace but Felicity could feel his eyes on her. It was almost as if he was assessing her. Which, she supposed, was his job. But, still, it made her uncomfortable.

"So uh, how long have you been working for Moira?" She asked, anything to fill the silence.

"About six years now. Though I mainly guard the siblings."

"Six years, that's a long time."

Diggle nodded thoughtfully. "The Queens are like my own family in a way. We've grown close over the years. Tommy and Oliver are like brothers to me. And Thea…she's the little sister I never had."

Felicity smiled and tucked her hands into the pockets of her coat to ward off the cold. "That's sweet."

"So, what about you? Are your parents here in Starling with you?"

She shook her head. "No, my dad passed away when I was six and my mom…well I don't see her a lot so I live on my own."

"I'm sorry about your dad. Where does your mom live?"

"Vegas. We don't really talk a lot, we had an argument about a year ago, and things have been strained ever since." Why was she telling him all this? He seemed to have a knack of drawing information out of her.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Family is important, Felicity. Especially at this time of year."

His tone suggested he was no stranger to losing someone. "Well…they're very lucky to have you."

He scoffed. "I don't know how much luck plays into it, but I do know one thing."

"What's that?"

"I'd never let anyone hurt them."

"Isn't that kinda your job?" She chuckled, but her smile soon faded when she saw his serious expression. "I'd never let anyone hurt them either."

For a moment, he just stared at her. Brown eyes studied her face so intensely that she had to fight the urge to look away. What exactly did he see when he looked at her like that? She was scared to find out.

"I believe you wouldn't." He said finally, a small smile appearing.

Feeling as if she'd just passed some sort of test, Felicity followed him up the large steps and into the main foyer of the house. The sheer size of it astounded her, every inch of it festooned with decorations. It was breath taking.

"Felicity, you came!" Thea attacked her with a hug so forceful that Felicity had to take a step back to keep from falling.

Moira and Walter appeared in the doorway, arm in arm, and dressed well for the occasion. She looked so regal in her long sleeved, plum coloured dress. "I'm so glad you could make it, Felicity."

"Thank you for inviting me." Felicity replied, feeling a tad underdressed in her plain black skirt and woolly jumper.

Moira smiled. "Come inside dear, it's freezing out there."

Out of nowhere, a maid appeared to take her coat. She shrugged out of it, mumbling a thank you, and let Thea pull her towards the living room. "We got something for you."

The whole room was probably bigger than her entire apartment, and in front of the window stood the biggest Christmas tree she'd ever seen. "Wow. That's a _big_ tree."

"That?" Thea waved her hand. "Oh that's nothing. You should see the one we have in the garden. Twice the size."

Felicity looked around the room, appreciating just how much work had been done to make it look this festive. When her eyes landed on the mantle above the fireplace, she gasped. Taking pride of place in the centre was a large menorah.

"Do you like it?" Thea asked, grinning. Felicity became aware that she was gaping and quickly snapped her mouth shut.

"I love it, it's beautiful. But you guys didn't have to do that." The conflicting emotions she felt were troubling. This family didn't even know her, yet they were going out of their way to make her feel welcome in their home. Her heart melted as she stared at the three of them. The ever-pressing need to tell them the truth faded slightly as she realised that being a part of this family could actually be a good thing. But she was getting ahead of herself.

"We wanted to. There's also another tradition that you should probably know about, since you're going to be his wife soon." Thea said, running over to the tree. She grabbed four candy canes from it and returned, handing one to Felicity.

"When Tommy, Ollie, and I were kids, we used to have contests to see who could finish theirs first. I usually won."

"Oliver would say that's because you cheated." Moira said with a heart-warming laugh.

"I did not!" She said, indignant. She looked back at Felicity. "Don't believe everything you hear around here, Felicity."

Felicity found herself chuckling in response. "I'll try to keep an open mind."

"Alright you two, it's time for presents." Walter said, leading his wife over to the large sofas in the centre of the room. On the table in between, there sat a few immaculately wrapped gifts.

Felicity held back, unsure of what to do. But Moira looked over at her with a frown. "Felicity, please sit down. We don't bite, I promise."

Thea patted the seat next to her. Felicity sat, but her eyes widened when Thea passed a rather large, beautifully wrapped box to her.

"To Felicity, from Santa." Thea whispered.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she watched the rest of them dig into their gifts, each of their eyes lighting up when they saw what was inside. It was a bittersweet feeling because she wasn't a part of this family, yet she already knew that she'd fallen in love with them.

* * *

Later that evening, Felicity snuggled deeper into the mattress, loving the sensation of being surrounded by velvety softness. After a hearty family meal, followed by games and evening drinks, Moira had insisted that she stay the night. She'd tried to refuse and offered to get a cab home but Moira wouldn't hear of it. So now, here she was in one of the guest rooms, trying and failing to fall asleep. If she were honest with herself, she'd admit that she hadn't really wanted to leave anyway. It had been such a wonderful evening.

"Oliver!" Thea's hushed voice sounded from the hallway. She'd left her door open to allow a little light into the room.

"Hey sis, what are you doing up?" Felicity's eyes flew open at the deep, rich tone of his voice.

"Where were you?"

"Sorry, I know I'm late."

"Late? Ollie, everyone is in bed. You missed everything and you know how important this was to mom."

Oliver sighed. "I know, I'm sorry Speedy. I'll make it up to her."

"You gonna go see Tommy tomorrow?" Felicity could hear the disapproval in Thea's voice.

"That's the plan." His voice got louder, signalling that he was walking down the hall towards her room.

"Ollie, keep your voice down, you'll wake Felicity."

She could practically hear him frowning. "Who's Felicity?"

"Tommy's fiancée."

Felicity winced at the silence that followed that statement.

"Tommy has a fiancée?" He was standing in the doorway now, his voice quieter. She was glad she had her back to the door but she squeezed her eyes shut just in case.

"She's really great, Ollie. You'll like her."

"Hmm, I guess we'll find out in the morning." Eventually he turned and left the doorway and Felicity let out the breath she'd been holding.

As she listened to Thea and Oliver say their goodnights, Felicity couldn't help but wonder what tomorrow would bring.

_**To Be Continued...**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**Chapter Three**_

Felicity tiptoed through the hallway, shoes in hand, her movements slow and steady. It was barely dawn and the rest of the house was still asleep. At least, she hoped they were. She felt guilty enough for sneaking out as it was, she'd be mortified if she were caught in the act. She'd had such a good time the night before, and Thea seemed to enjoy spending time with her. She could feel a bond forming between the two of them, and that was why she had to leave. This wasn't fair to them.

There was only one problem with her plan. She was lost. She paused to look at the paintings lining one wall, none of them looked familiar, though that could be because of the champagne she'd had last night, too.

"Okay, don't panic." She whispered to herself. "It's just a house, not the Twilight Zone."

Glancing back at the way she'd been heading in the first place, Felicity frowned and carried on walking. When she turned a corner and discovered another long hallway, she blew out a breath. "Maybe it _is_ the Twilight Zone."

"Good morning."

Felicity's hand flew up to her mouth at lightning speed, but not fast enough to cover the high-pitched, garbled sound that escaped. Pressing a hand to her chest, she turned around to see where the voice had come from. When she saw Oliver Queen standing in front of her, leaning against the wall with his hands in his pockets, another sound bubbled up to the surface. Though this was one was for an entirely different reason. Oh but he was handsome. With his dark hair, short and spiky, and the scruff outlining his strong jaw, Felicity found herself uncharacteristically speechless.

Suddenly conscious of the fact that she was staring, Felicity closed her mouth and smiled. Oliver returned it, and pushed himself off the wall, coming to a stop right in front of her.

"You must be Felicity." He said, extending a hand towards her. "Hi, I'm Oliver Queen."

She could feel her cheeks heating up as she grasped his hand and shook it. "I…I know who you are. I was very glad to hear that you're not dead anymore."

Her eyes widened as her words sunk in. "Not that you were, obviously, because you're standing right in front of me and…you look really great." _Crap_! "I mean, you look healthy and…"

She closed her eyes and sighed. Why couldn't her mouth let her brain have a chance to think before it opened? "I just meant that I'm happy that you're back, alive and well."

Oliver, to his credit, had stayed silent until the rambling ceased, his mouth tilting up at the corners. "Thank you. It's very nice to meet you, Felicity."

"It's nice to meet you too. But I have to get going now. Work, you know?"

Oliver nodded. "I'll walk you out then."

"Oh no, you really don't have to do that…"

"It's fine." He said, gesturing for her to start walking. "Besides, how else are you going to find your way out of the Twilight Zone?"

Felicity winced. "You heard that huh?"

Oliver grinned and threw her a wink. "I have very good hearing."

As they reached the main foyer, which didn't take very long, Oliver opened the door for her.

"Thank you." She said, stepping out into the cold morning air. He nodded his head but didn't say anything else. The way the sun brought out the blue in his eyes was quite mesmerizing. It was like looking into the ocean. But there was something there that made her pause. It was almost as if he was assessing her, and she was coming up short.

Feeling a little awkward, she smiled and turned to leave.

"Felicity."

She didn't know why, but she panicked. "Okay, look I know that I-"

"Hey." She looked up at the soft tone of his voice. He offered her a genuine smile. "Welcome to the family."

Well, didn't that just make her feel worse? "Oh, thank you."

* * *

"How are the plans for your grand opening coming along, dear?" Moira asked as Walter pulled out a chair for her to sit at the breakfast table, later that morning.

Oliver, sitting to her left, put down his fork and grabbed his orange juice. "It's fine. There's still a lot to do before tonight."

"Well, I'm sure everything will be fine. You've worked so hard to make it happen. I'm very proud of you." She smiled, but it faded as she placed a napkin in her lap. "We missed you last night."

"Yeah, I know. I'm sorry, I got held up at the club. Inventory."

Oliver felt bad. Ever since his return, Christmas had been the one thing his mother was looking forward to the most. Having her family all together again was something to celebrate. He hated lying to her, to all of them, but it was necessary. If she had any idea of what he'd been doing in the year since he'd been back, she'd have another heart attack. He knew that she'd wanted him to take a leadership role in Queen Consolidated, but his plans to avenge the city on his father's behalf came first. He was glad when Tommy stepped into his place.

Moira smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "I understand. It's a shame you didn't get to meet Felicity."

Thea, who was sitting next to Walter, nodded. "She's great, Ollie. Really funny and smart. Pretty too."

"I know." When three quizzical pairs of eyes suddenly settled on him, he realised what he'd said. Was Felicity's 'talk first, think later' thing contagious? "I mean, I met her this morning. While she was sneaking out."

Despite the rambling, which he had to admit was somewhat endearing, Oliver didn't trust her. He didn't _know_ her. And trusting someone he didn't know was hard for him. Especially given how close she'd gotten to his family in such a short space of time.

"She didn't 'sneak' out, Ollie." Thea said, the expression on her face warning him not to go down that path. It irritated him that Thea had seemed to form the closest bond with Felicity. She was too young to really know that people weren't always what they seemed. Even her own brother.

"Then why did she leave before everyone else was awake?"

"She has a job to go to. It's a place that people go to earn money to live. It's a tricky concept, I know, but you'll get the hang of it eventually."

"Thea." Walter chided, glancing from both siblings to Moira, who was silently watching the exchange.

Oliver wanted to drop the subject, knowing that any upset could cause his mother's heart condition to act up, but he couldn't. "What do we really know about her? I mean, you'd think that if Tommy were engaged, he'd at least tell us. Why did he keep it a secret?"

Moira shook her head. "I don't know, Oliver. That's something we will have to ask him when he wakes up. In the meantime, we should show Felicity some courtesy and not make her feel as if she's on trial. If she's going to be a part of this family, we need to make sure that she feels welcome."

It was a warning, spoken in a tone that Oliver knew well enough from his childhood. Usually whenever he'd embarrassed his mother in front of company. He let out a quiet sigh and acquiesced. There didn't seem to be a way to talk some sense into them. His family had obviously grown fond of Felicity Smoak. He would just have to check up on her himself.

Despite first impressions, Oliver wasn't going to be so easy to sway.

* * *

This was getting worse by the minute, Felicity decided, as she tugged on her jacket and gloves. When she'd gotten the call from Moira earlier, she was sure that she was in trouble for sneaking out without telling anyone. Instead, Moira had a request. One that Felicity hadn't expected. So now, she was heading out the door, on her way to Tommy's apartment to collect some comfortable pyjamas for him.

"Felicity."

With a sigh, she turned to face her boss. "Hey, Alex."

He frowned at her attire. "You leaving for lunch? I thought you normally ate here?"

"I have a quick errand to run. Well, not so much quick since it involves running back to my apartment because I didn't bring my car today, you know, because of the snow, and-"

"Hey, Felicity. " Alex chuckled, cutting her off. "What's going on with you?"

"I don't know what you mean."

"I've gotten pretty used to the way your mind runs at a higher speed than most people, but this is new. Something is going on." His smile dropped. "What's wrong?"

She didn't know if it was the sympathy in his eyes, or the softness in his tone, but Felicity couldn't take anymore. Tears sprung up as she licked her lips. "I've made a terrible mistake."

She told him everything, from the moment Tommy had spoken to her in the break room, right through to the phone call she'd gotten from Moira two hours ago. Alex sat in her office, quiet and stoic, until she'd finished.

"Felicity, this is…" He blew out a slow breath. "This isn't right."

"I know that, Alex. You have to help me. What should I do?"

Alex looked conflicted for a moment. "Felicity, when I told my grandmother that I was marrying my wife, she had a heart attack."

Felicity's jaw dropped and Alex rushed to finish his story.

"She didn't die or anything. Apparently, there was a lot of bad history between my family and hers. Anyway, my point is…right now, you're in this too deep. I think you need to just play along and wait for the right time to tell them the truth."

Felicity rubbed at her temples. "There is no right time to mention something like this."

"No, but think about it this way. When Tommy wakes up, his family will be so relieved that eventually, they won't even care that you lied to them."

Felicity threw him a sceptical glare. "I sincerely doubt that."

Alex stood up to leave, but paused at the doorway. "Just think about it, Felicity. Don't do anything rash."

"I'd say that boat sailed already, wouldn't you?"

* * *

Oliver glanced up at the apartment building where Felicity Smoak lived. It was a nice place, with a courtyard that glistened with layers of snow, and a large Christmas tree in the middle. He checked the number on the piece of paper in his hand once again, and crossed the street. On the other side, was an old, battered car with its hood up, and half a body poking out from underneath.

He paused on his way to the door, wondering if it might be better to get an outsider's opinion on the woman who was invading his family's life.

"Excuse me." His voice startled the man, causing him to rear up so fast that he hit his head on the hood. "Sorry. Do you live here?"

The man took one glance at him and straightened as he pulled his pants up. "Live here? I own this place."

Oliver struggled to hide the smile at this guy's bravado. "Oh great, then you would know the woman that lives in apartment fifteen."

A knowing smirk appeared. "Know her? I'm dating her."

Oliver's eyes narrowed. "Is that so?"

"Yeah, Felicity's a great girl. Smoking hot."

Be that as it may, Oliver thought, this woman was a mystery. One that he found intriguing. But his first priority was his family. He refused to stand by while this woman took advantage of them. He needed more information about her.

* * *

_Oh, crap. What do I do now? _Felicity thought, as she stood staring at the door attendant of Tommy's apartment building. There was no way she was getting in there. She had originally hoped that Tommy lived in a building with a key card system, or something easy for her to hack her way into. No such luck. Every visitor was logged in and checked back out when they left. At least she had a key to his apartment, courtesy of the hospital giving her Tommy's belongings.

She spotted a man walking towards the door and, without thinking, ducked down behind him. He made his way over to the desk, allowing her the opportunity to slip into a hallway leading off from the main reception. Letting out a relieved breath, Felicity straightened and headed over to the elevator.

When she entered Tommy's apartment, she was surprised to see it so…clean. He always struck her as the kind of man who liked to live in the moment. So seeing everything neat and in its place was very illuminating. Resisting the urge to study the man via his home, Felicity searched for the bedroom.

It was huge, with a queen-sized bed right in the centre. The floor to ceiling windows offered her the most beautiful view of the city, made even more breath taking by the sun glinting off the snow that still clung to the buildings.

What would it be like to live in a place like this? She wondered. She couldn't imagine it, but it must be nice to be able to come home after a long day at the office and just sit. Watching the view, or taking a long soak in the immensely large bath tub. And yet, it felt as if something were missing.

It was a gorgeous apartment, but that was it. It wasn't a home. There were no personal touches, aside from a couple of photos of his family. There was nothing that really set this place apart from any other apartment. And for some reason, that made her feel sad for Tommy.

With a shake of her head, she focused on her task. Tommy needed pyjamas. As she set about searching through some drawers next to the walk-in wardrobe, she groaned. That meant underwear too. Rifling through a stranger's drawers as he lay in a coma was the very definition of wrong. Yet here she was.

"I can't believe I am doing this." She mumbled to herself, throwing Tommy's things into a bag. Satisfied that she'd gathered enough of what he needed, she headed back towards the living room. Her eyes widened at the sound of keys jangling in the lock of the main door. On reflex, she quickly ducked into the kitchen, hoping whoever it was would go away fast.

Clutching the bag to her chest, she listened for the sounds of footsteps, but she couldn't hear any. _This is ridiculous_, she thought. Whoever it was had a key, which meant it had to be one of his family members. All of whom, knew who she was. Or at least, who she pretended to be. It was perfectly reasonable for her to be there.

Taking a deep breath, ready to face whoever it was, Felicity pushed the swinging door open. She shrieked when it hit something solid and bounced back at her. Wincing, she slowly opened it again to see Oliver standing there holding his nose.

"Oh my God, I'm _so _sorry!" She said, throwing the bag on the counter. Oliver stepped into the kitchen as she dove into the freezer to grab some ice cubes.

"It's okay. I'm fine. Nice shot by the way."

She held out a handful of ice cubes, trying to catch a few as they fell and skittered across the tiled floor.

"I wasn't uh…I wasn't expecting anyone to be here."

His head tilted to the side as he studied her. "How did you get in here?"

"Uh…key?"

Oliver nodded, contemplating that. "Right, of course. You must stay here a lot."

What was he thinking? His eyes were so guarded, his expression giving nothing away. "I don't know that I'd say a lot but…well, yeah I guess."

Suddenly aware of the cold numbness spreading throughout her fingers, Felicity dumped the ice into the sink and dried her hands. "How's your uh…your nose?"

She reached out to touch his face, but he winced and pulled back. "I'm so sorry; I didn't know it hit you that hard."

He chuckled. "No, it's not that. The nose is fine, but your hands are freezing."

"Oh."

For a moment, neither of them spoke, and an uncomfortable silence filled the air. Until the phone started ringing, startling them both.

"Aren't you gonna get that?" Oliver asked, though it sounded more like a challenge to her.

She waved a hand in the air as she picked up the bag of clothes. "No, I'll just let the machine get it."

Oliver narrowed his eyes for a second before moving over to answer the phone. "Hello?"

She frowned when he held the phone out to her. "It's for you."

Why would anyone be calling her here? Who even knew she _was_ here? With a forced smile, she grabbed the receiver from him and waited for him to step back before raising it to her ear. "Hello? Yes, this is Felicity. Oh really? Okay then, thank you."

When she hung up, she turned to see Oliver watching her with raised eyebrows. "Who was it?"

Feeling uncomfortable under his penetrating gaze, she pushed her glasses up on her nose. It really was incredibly unfair for him to be that good looking. It was hard to concentrate around him. "Oh uh, that was the hospital. They say it's customary for friends and family to go down and give blood."

A smile appeared as he pushed himself off the counter he'd been leaning on. "Great, let's go together."

Felicity's smile froze. _Great_. Things just kept getting better and better.

* * *

"So how did you and Tommy meet?" Oliver asked, lying on a bed next to Felicity in the hospital. She'd been quiet on the ride over here, and he wondered if he was getting to her. _Good_, he thought. Guilty people were the worst at hiding their emotions and right now, Felicity was practically humming with it. As the nurse tied a rubber tube around her arm, Felicity's leg began to twitch.

"Um…at work."

"That's nice. Hey, we'll have to get your picture soon."

"What for?"

"For the table in the main foyer. Every family member's photo is on that table. It's kind of a tradition." He replied with a scoff.

"Oh, well, I really don't take a good picture." Her voice was shaky, her eyes glued to the nurse as she moved toward her with a needle.

"Somehow, I don't believe that."

She glanced at him briefly before returning her attention to the nurse. "Take one and find out then."

He recognised the quiver in her voice, the wide eyes that she couldn't take off the needle. She was scared. When he looked down at her hand, he could see it trembling. No, she wasn't scared, she was terrified.

"Hey," Reaching across the gap between them, he took her hand in his. As soon as his skin touched hers, he felt it tingle, all the way up his arm. Judging from the way her eyes flew to his, she'd felt it too. "Are you okay?"

She nodded. "I just…I don't do too well with needles. Well, all pointy things actually, which is kind of ironic because I actually volunteered for this and-"

"Felicity." He said her name softly, interrupting what he knew was about to be a ramble. He needed to keep her distracted. "Don't look at the needle, look at me. Listen to me."

She did, and he noticed just how beautiful her blue eyes were. He knew he couldn't trust her, but for the first time since meeting her, he really wanted to. Their gazes locked for the longest time, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw the nurse smile at him as she pulled the needle out of her arm.

"So when did you two start dating?" He asked as the nurse finished up with him.

Felicity sat up slowly and accepted the orange juice that was offered. Staring into the bottom of the cup, she mumbled. "September seventeenth."

"Three months? That's awfully quick."

"Oh, you have no idea."

"But…wait a second. He asked you to marry him after three months of dating?"

With a sharp nod, she got down off the bed. "I gotta go."

The nurse tried to grab her, but Felicity easily dodged her hand. "Miss, you can't leave yet. You need to sip this slowly."

"I'm fine."

"Wait a minute, Felicity. Wait!" She paused as Oliver scrambled off the bed, but by the time he reached her, she was already swaying.

"Oliver…" She breathed. His hands shot out to steady her as she turned, her face alarmingly pale. Her eyes closed and then she was falling. He caught her easily, and lifted her into his arms to place her back on the bed. Unable to help himself, his thumb grazed over her forehead as he stroked her hair.

"She'll be fine in a minute, Sir. This happens all the time." The nurse smiled, and the reassuring tone in her voice had him pulling back. Whatever happened just now between him and Felicity had to be in his imagination.

Because if she truly was his brother's fiancée, he sure as hell had no business touching her.

**_To Be Continued..._**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thank you all so much for your patience, I know that I have taken a while to update. So here is an extra long chapter that will hopefully make up for it. Thanks again for the lovely comments too, I'm so glad you're liking this story, it's a lot of fun to write. **

**_Previously on While You Were Sleeping:_**

_"But… wait a second. He asked you to marry him after three months of dating?"_

_With a sharp nod, she got down off the bed. "I gotta go."_

_The nurse tried to grab her, but Felicity easily dodged her hand. "Miss, you can't leave yet. You need to sip this slowly."_

_"I'm fine."_

_"Wait a minute, Felicity. Wait!" She paused as Oliver scrambled off the bed, but by the time he reached her, she was already swaying. _

_"Oliver…" She breathed. His hands shot out to steady her as she turned, her face alarmingly pale. Her eyes closed and then she was falling. He caught her easily, and lifted her into his arms to place her back on the bed. Unable to help himself, his thumb grazed over her forehead as he stroked her hair. _

_"She'll be fine in a minute, Sir. This happens all the time." The nurse smiled, and the reassuring tone in her voice had him pulling back. Whatever happened just now between him and Felicity had to be in his imagination. _

_Because if she truly was his brother's fiancée, he sure as hell had no business touching her._

* * *

_**Chapter Four**_

Her eyes fluttered open slowly, and the light was so bright that she had to close them again.

"Felicity?" Oliver said, his voice close. Too close.

She squinted one eye open and saw his face looming over her, concern etched into his features. Then it all came rushing back, and the embarrassment she felt far surpassed any discomfort at his proximity to her.

She tried to sit up, but the gentle pressure of his hand on her shoulder put a stop to that.

"Don't move too quickly, you fainted. You need to take it slow."

He licked his lips slowly as he stared down at her, and she felt her heartbeat kick up a notch. Why did he have to be so good looking?

"Well, I'm sure you're used to women falling all over you by now." Her eyes went wide. "That is… not that I fell over you, but… oh you know what I mean!"

His eyes crinkled in amusement, but there was also something there that she couldn't quite read. He backed away, but only slightly, and allowed her to sit up.

"How are you feeling?" He asked, perching himself on the edge of the bed next to hers.

"Like an idiot."

"You might be many things, Felicity. But an idiot is not one of them."

She glanced up at him, at the seriousness in his expression. What exactly was he getting at? Not wanting to find out, Felicity excused herself and got off the bed. Just as she got to the door, he spoke again.

"Are you going to see Tommy?"

"Um, yes."

"Great, I'll come with you."

She wanted to protest, actually, she just wanted to go home and crawl under her duvet. But Tommy was his brother, how could she tell him she didn't want him with her?

It was unnerving being in his presence. So many emotions were at war with each other and it was confusing. He clearly didn't trust her, yet he seemed so genuinely concerned for her. One minute there was a softness in his gaze, the next it was hard and suspicious. But through all of that, she couldn't blame him. She was lying to his family, after all. She had an inkling that he wouldn't believe her if she told him that she wasn't doing it to hurt them.

Neither of them spoke as they walked down to the elevator. But as soon as they were inside, and the doors had closed, he turned to face her.

"So you and Tommy…"

He let the question hang in the air, making her wonder where he was going with it. "What about me and Tommy?"

He shook his head as he expelled a harsh breath. "I'm just curious. He never mentioned you, not once."

Felicity swallowed hard, unsure of how to answer. "Well, he's been busy at the company."

Something flashed across his face at her words. Guilt, maybe? But what would he have to feel guilty about? "Yeah, we haven't really seen a lot of him lately. But still, I would've expected him to tell me about meeting the woman he intended to marry."

Felicity had never been so grateful to hear the ding of the elevator doors opening. She walked out first, her steps hurried, but Oliver easily kept up with her. "Maybe he was planning to tell you soon. It's been a little crazy around here, if you hadn't noticed."

"Actually, I had noticed. It's been hectic for me, too. Do you visit him a lot?"

"As much as I can."

Oliver nodded towards the bag she was holding. "Did you bring his favourite music?"

She frowned up at him. "What?"

"Well I heard that coma patients respond better to familiar sounds. Music seems like a good start."

She let out a sigh as they rounded a corner. "No, I didn't."

"Because you don't know what he likes? Or…?"

Okay, she was really starting to get irritated now. Why was he pushing this so much? "I know what he likes, Oliver. But a hospital I.C.U ward isn't the best place for music."

He nodded at that, but he clearly wasn't prepared to back down. The relief she felt when Tommy's room came into view was short lived. It might've delayed Oliver's persistent questioning, but as she reached the doorway and saw the entire family, plus Mr Diggle in there, she realised that her day was about to get a whole lot worse.

"Maybe Felicity knows." Thea said, perking up as both she and Oliver entered the room.

"Knows what?"

"Does Tommy have a favourite show that he likes to watch?" Walter asked. "He has a TV but it's set to the news, and we thought he'd prefer to listen to something he at least likes."

Felicity felt about two inches tall under their scrutiny. "Oh, you know, I don't think he really has a lot of time for TV."

Moira nodded, stroking Tommy's shoulder soothingly. "No, I was worried that he's been working himself too hard at the company."

She looked so sad, and Felicity found herself wanting to comfort her. But she had no idea what to say.

"What's his favourite ice cream?" Oliver asked, appearing in front of her with his arms folded, and a determined look on his face.

_Crap_! Oh, she knew this. She'd seen it in Tommy's freezer after hitting Oliver in the face with the door. Something that, right now, she'd very much like to do again. "Ben and Jerry's."

"Huh!" He snorted, but frowned when he realised it was correct. "Okay, favourite take-away?"

"Big Belly Burger." Okay so that was _her_ favourite take-out, but really, who didn't love that place?

Felicity felt a moment of satisfaction when Oliver's mouth snapped shut, and… was he actually pouting? It would actually be cute if it weren't so irritating.

"Why are you asking her all these questions, Oliver?" Moira asked, looking between the two of them.

Oliver threw Felicity a challenging look. "Don't ask me, ask her boyfriend."

Thea gasped. "That's not funny, Ollie. You know he's-"

Oliver interrupted her, but kept his eyes on Felicity. "No, not this one."

Now it was Felicity's turn to be confused. What was he talking about?

"Cooper Seldon." Oliver announced.

Felicity almost burst out laughing, because the idea was just so ridiculous. "Cooper? Are you serious?"

The stern look in his eyes told her he was. "He told me that you're dating him."

"And you believed him? He's delusional!"

Out of the corner of her eye, Felicity could see Moira growing more agitated by the second. She sat down in her chair, pressing a hand to her chest.

"He said that you two are intimate." Oliver pressed on, unaware of his mother's anguish.

Felicity shook her head. "Oliver, he's had a crush on me ever since I moved into the building. That's it. Sometimes he flirts, most of the time he asks me out, and _every_ single time, I turn him down. But he's harmless."

"Mom, are you okay?" Thea asked, moving to Moira's side. She nodded, but Felicity could see her face growing paler by the minute.

"I'm fine. But… if she wanted to prove it, she'd prove it." Her cool, assessing eyes landed on Felicity. "Right, dear?"

_Oh, this is not good_. This would be the perfect opportunity to get it all out in the open. Admit the truth and walk away. But with everyone watching her, and the sad yet hopeful expression on Thea's face, she couldn't do it. She couldn't be responsible for Moira having another heart attack. If she walked away now, that would be on her conscience for the rest of her life.

She had hoped she'd never have to do this, discovering it the first time had been embarrassing enough, but she had no choice. Taking a deep breath, she placed her hands on her hips. "Tommy has… a third nipple."

The room fell silent, and Felicity could feel her heart start to beat faster in her chest. Oliver's eyes narrowed as he studied her, and she felt uncomfortable as Moira looked at Thea, who shrugged back.

"Well I'm not looking." Thea said, raising her hands.

Moira shook her head and stood up. "Okay, I'm his mother."

As Moira pulled back the covers and opened his pyjama shirt, Felicity took a step back, away from the family as they crowded around him. She felt so guilty that it was becoming an actual physical pain in her chest.

"I don't see it." Moira said, and Felicity felt the panic start to rise. "Oh… is that it?"

Thea cringed as she leaned closer to look. Moira was holding his arm up slightly. "Yeah, I think so. Just under his armpit. Gross!"

When the family relaxed and turned to look at her with relieved smiles, Felicity was suddenly grateful that she'd been here when the nurses had decided to give Tommy a bed bath. Otherwise, she wasn't exactly sure how this would've played out.

"Oliver." Moira said, pulling the blanket back over Tommy's chest. "I think you owe Felicity an apology, don't you?"

Oliver pursed his lips and turned to face Felicity. "I guess I do."

* * *

By the time Felicity entered her apartment later that evening, she was eager to forget the day's events and indulge in something very sweet and very bad for her. This whole thing was such a mess, but she couldn't see a way out of it without hurting the people she'd come to love.

She sighed as she opened her freezer, going straight for the mint chip ice cream. Oliver seemed placated, for now. But she wasn't stupid enough to believe that he now trusted her because of a third nipple. Cringing at the memory, Felicity was about to dig into her ice cream when there was a knock at her door.

"Who is it?" She yelled, scooping some ice cream out before heading over.

"What gives?"

At the sound of Cooper's voice, Felicity groaned. She threw open the door to find him standing there with something in his hand. "Cooper, I'm really not in the mood-"

"You stood me up." He said, barging inside.

"What for?" She closed the door and leaned back against it as she popped the spoonful of minty goodness into her mouth.

"Our date last night."

She frowned as he pulled his pants up and struck the usual pose that she knew was for her benefit. Most of the time, it was all she could do not to chuckle because he looked so ridiculous doing it. "What date?"

"Our date, the opening of Verdant."

"I never said I'd go on a date with you."

Cooper threw his hands in the air, and then rested one on his hip. "Yes you did, and you missed it. You stood me up."

Felicity rolled her eyes at his dramatic over reaction, and snatched the tickets out of his hand to look at them. "Cooper, you got the wrong day. The opening is tonight."

Cooper frowned as she shoved the tickets into his chest. "Tonight? Oh, so we're still on?"

She tried hard to hide her irritation, she really did. But Cooper's timing couldn't have been worse today and she really didn't have it in her to sugar coat her response this time.

"No, we're not." She winced when his face fell. "I'm sorry Cooper, but it's been a really long day and I'm tired. I really just want to relax and get an early night."

Cooper opened his mouth to respond, but another knock on the door quickly shut him up.

"Who is it?" Felicity called.

"It's John Diggle, Felicity."

"You're two-timing me now?" Cooper demanded, and Felicity slapped a hand across his mouth, which he easily dodged. "Hey, I'll fight the guy."

Cooper took a step toward the door, but then paused. "Is he a big guy? He sounds big."

"Yeah he's huge." Oh, she did _not_ need this right now. After all the accusations Oliver had thrown at her today, Diggle discovering Cooper in her apartment would definitely not look good. Biting her lower lip, she shoved Cooper into her closet.

He didn't appear too bothered though, as he found a pair of her underwear. "Hey, nice panties.

"Not. A. Word." She quickly snatched them out of his hand and pointed a finger at him. He zipped his lips and pretended to throw away the key as she slammed the door shut.

Taking a moment to calm herself down, Felicity made her way over to the door to let Diggle in. "Hi Mr Diggle, what can I do for you?"

His eyes gleamed with humour. "I'm more of a boxer brief man myself."

Frowning, Felicity followed his line of sight down to her hand, where her bright pink panties were on full display. Inwardly groaning and feeling her cheeks heating up already, she tucked them into her pocket and stepped back to let him enter.

"So what's up?" She asked, taking a seat on the sofa.

"Felicity…" Diggle paused, looking unsure of where to start.

"Mr Diggle-"

He held up a hand. "Please, call me Digg."

"Okay, Digg. What's wrong?" Her eyes widened as a new thought struck her. "Did something happen to Tommy?"

"No, no he's… the same. I came here to tell you something that I think you should know."

"Okay?"

Diggle paced in front of her, making her nervous. "The night you visited Tommy, I was there, outside the door."

Felicity froze, unable to move much less speak.

"I heard everything." Diggle carried on. "So, I know the truth."

She tried hard to swallow past the sudden lump in her throat. "I'm so sorry, Digg. I never meant for any of this to happen, it just… it all got away from me, and it just snowballed so quickly into something I can't control. But you don't need to worry; I'm going to tell them the truth."

Diggle sat down beside her. "Don't tell them a thing, Felicity."

Okay, now she was confused. She'd expected more yelling from their personal bodyguard. "What?"

Diggle patted her hand. "Since you've come into their lives, they feel like they have Tommy back. It's been so long since he's been around, he always kept himself busy. But now that you're here, they feel like they're a part of his life again."

_Wow_, she thought. She had definitely not expected _that_ reaction. "I don't think I can keep this up for much longer. I'm a bag of nerves around them as it is."

"You don't have to. Just until Tommy wakes up."

"And then what?"

Diggle shrugged. "We'll deal with that when it happens."

She frowned down at their hands, his giant one dwarfing hers. "Why aren't you angry at me? You've known all this time and said nothing. I'm a terrible person aren't I?"

Diggle smiled. "Felicity, I don't think there's a force on this planet that could make you a terrible person. Last night I told you that I would never let anyone hurt the Queen family."

"I remember."

"And I also said that I believed you wouldn't either. I stand by that. They need you, Felicity. Just like you need them."

She blinked at his words, stunned that he seemed to _see_ so much. Was her loneliness that obvious? Was she that transparent? She hoped not.

"You're really close to them, aren't you? Oliver especially."

There was a look in Diggle's eyes that she couldn't quite get a read on. "Oliver is like my brother. I would do anything for him. Since he's been back, he's changed. There are things that you don't understand about him."

"I'm starting to get that."

"Speaking of Oliver, I have something for you." He removed a piece of paper from the inside pocket of his coat and handed it to her, though his sudden change in topic did not go unnoticed.

Glancing down, she saw that it was a ticket for the opening of Oliver's club later that evening. "What's this for?"

"It's a peace offering. Oliver hopes that you'll consider joining him tonight. This club has been a long time coming and I think he wants to show it off. It's the first time he's ever really worked by himself to get something up and running. Plus…" Diggle shrugged. "I think he just wants to make amends, Felicity."

"I don't know if it's a good idea."

Diggle stood and walked towards the door, stopping just as he opened it. "Just think about it. If nothing else, you get a free night out."

Felicity smiled and nodded, promising to think on it.

* * *

Later that evening, Felicity sat at the bar in Verdant, nursing an appletini and cursing Oliver Queen's name. Since her chat with Diggle earlier, she felt as if a weight had been lifted. The guilt was still there, probably always would be. But knowing that Diggle now knew the truth lifted her spirits a little. She wasn't completely alone in this anymore.

She'd thought long and hard about his offer, deciding not to go and then changing her mind again. Eventually she'd settled on going, but only for a couple of hours. Oliver's actions today had been awful, but she couldn't hold them against him. He was only protecting his family.

Now though, her sympathy towards him was waning fast. He had requested her presence here tonight, and yet he was nowhere to be seen. Where was he? She knew it was the opening night and he was probably busy, but he could've at least had the decency to say hello.

With a heavy sigh, she pushed her drink away and made her way out of the club. Once outside, she drank in the fresh air and groaned at the long line of people all waiting for a cab. Since she'd left her car at home, she had no option but to walk the two miles back to her apartment. At least she'd had the sense to bring a thick coat with her. Her flimsy, red dress wasn't designed for this cold weather, but for reasons she didn't want to analyse, she'd wanted to wear it.

In order to avoid the crowd, most of which consisted of leering males with too much alcohol in their system, Felicity took a short cut down the alley next to the club. Ten seconds later, it became apparent that that was a big mistake. A strong hand clamped down hard over her mouth, cutting off any chance of screaming out as he dragged her further into the alley.

"Stay quiet blondie, and this will go smoothly." The acrid smell of whiskey filled her nostrils as he whispered in her ear. "Give me your purse. Now."

Felicity squeezed her eyes shut and did as she was told. Of course, this had to happen tonight. The perfect end to an already crappy day.

"Wasn't so hard, was it?" he said, pushing her against the wall. Her heart beat frantically in her chest as she realised that even though he now had her purse, he still wasn't letting go.

_Oh God_…

"Take your hands off her." A low voice growled from behind the man holding her, and the relief she felt almost buckled her knees.

Her attacker flicked a quick glance behind him and scoffed. "This ain't Halloween, man. Mind your own business."

There was a sharp metallic sound, and then the sound of a wire being pulled taught. The man's eyes widened, just slightly as something pressed against the back of his neck.

"This _is_ my business. You have three seconds to release her before I put you down."

Felicity could see the fear building in his eyes; he knew he was in trouble here. Slowly, he removed his hand from her mouth and stepped back.

As she drew in a lungful of air, he turned to face her rescuer. It happened so fast that she didn't even see his fist connect with his jaw, she only saw him fall to the ground, unconscious.

Mouth hanging open, Felicity looked up and came face to face with the man that everyone called 'The Hood'. Starling City's very own vigilante. She'd heard the stories about him, and right now, standing in front of him, her relief once again turned to fear.

He stood there, silently watching her. She pressed herself back against the wall, no idea what her next move should be. Should she scream? Draw some attention to the situation? No, that probably wasn't a good idea; he could kill her before she even drew a breath. But he had saved her, maybe he wasn't all bad. So she stayed quiet, waiting for him to move.

He took a step towards her, raising a hand as if he was going to touch her. "Are you okay?"

"I…"

"I'm not going to hurt you." he said, his voice still low and rough. Clearly, he was using some kind of modifier. "You shouldn't be out here alone."

"I was…" She trailed off, trying to find her voice. But the fact that she couldn't see his face was terrifying. "I was just going home."

He gave her a sharp nod and turned to leave, but he paused for a second to glance over his shoulder at her. "Get home safe, and don't walk down any more alleys."

Felicity glanced at the man still lying unconscious on the ground. "What about him?"

"I'll take care of him. Go home. Now."

His tone left her no room to argue, so she quickly snatched her purse up from the ground and started walking. She'd only taken about five steps before she turned back.

"What is it?" he asked. How did he know she'd turned around? The man had scarily good senses.

"Um, I just wanted to say… thank you."

"What?" He seemed genuinely surprised by her words.

"You saved me. I just wanted to let you know that I appreciate it."

He took a moment to process that, but she couldn't tell what his expression was. His face was completely hidden by that green hood.

"You're welcome. Now go home."

* * *

By the time Oliver had managed to catch up to her, Felicity was halfway home. It had taken longer than he'd planned to go back to his base of operations that was located beneath his new club, and change. After dispatching Diggle to deal with her attacker, he'd rushed to his car and drove off after her.

He pulled up alongside her and got out. "Felicity."

She stopped and he could see the tension in her shoulders as she turned to face him. "So, more questions?"

Oliver winced and came to a stop a few feet away from her. "No, and I'm sorry about this afternoon. That wasn't fair of me."

She huffed out a sigh and stared down at the ground, kicking at the snow beneath her feet. "I understand why you did it."

"You do?"

"Yes. You're just protecting your family. I get that. But just because I understand it, doesn't mean that it didn't make me feel humiliated and… small."

He took a step towards her. "I know. I put you on the spot and I am truly sorry for that."

She raised her gaze to his, and he was momentarily distracted by how blue her eyes were. There was fire and determination in those eyes, and he was relieved to see it. He never wanted to see the fear he'd seen earlier, ever again. When he saw that man's hand over her mouth, Felicity pressed up against a wall, it had taken great will power to only knock the man unconscious. He'd wanted to do worse.

Then that fearful gaze had turned on him, and it had left him feeling… strange. Since his return from the island, his best weapon had been instilling fear into the hearts of his targets. But seeing that in _her_ eyes had made him uncomfortable.

Felicity nodded slightly. "Okay, you're forgiven. Though you could've just told me this in the club. Which _you _invited me to, by the way."

He knew that she'd been waiting for him tonight. But scratching another name off his father's list had taken precedence and he'd had no choice but to stand her up. "I'm sorry about that too. It was really hectic in there tonight."

"Then why aren't you there now?"

He shrugged. "I decided to take a well-earned break."

A gust of wind kicked up a light dusting of snow around them, and he saw her shiver as she wrapped her arms around herself.

"Are you okay, Felicity? You seem a little shaken up."

She made a popping sound with her mouth and nodded. "I'm fine. It's just been a long night."

She wasn't ready to talk about her attack. He could understand that. "Come on, I'll take you home."

He saw a brief flash of relief cross her face, and it made him feel bad for even letting her walk this far on her own. She was still scared. Getting mugged wasn't something you just brushed off. And being rescued by a man, who terrified you just as much, was even worse.

"Thanks."

He opened the passenger door for her, waited until she was seated comfortably, and then made his way around the car.

Oliver waited patiently for her to speak, because he had no idea how to initiate a conversation with her. She still seemed to be on edge around him. Fortunately, he didn't have to wait long.

"So… opening a night club must be pretty exciting."

He glanced across and caught her watching him, and almost immediately, she averted her gaze to look out of the windscreen. "It's a lot of work, but yeah."

"What made you decide to take a career in the club business?"

Oliver thought carefully about his answer. "You probably already know that I was away… for a while."

"If you mean stranded on a deserted island for five years, presumed dead, then came back to life, then yes. I am aware. I do watch the news."

The teasing tone of her voice made him smile. "Well, when I returned last year, I think everyone expected me to step into my father's shoes. To run Queen Consolidated."

Felicity raised an eyebrow. "But you didn't want to?"

"No. I wanted to do something different. Something that was just for me. And when I discovered that the old steel factory that my father owned was abandoned, I came up with an idea to do something with it."

"And thus Verdant was born." she chuckled. It was a beautiful sound, Oliver thought.

"It's taken a long time, and a lot of work. But I got there in the end."

She nodded, still smiling. "So is that why Tommy became C.E.O? I mean, if anyone was going to open a night club, I would've thought it'd be him."

Oliver frowned. "Tommy knew that I couldn't do it. I don't have the necessary qualifications, for one thing. That company would be worse off with me in charge."

She placed a comforting hand on his forearm and he felt that familiar tingle again. "Hey, don't sell yourself short, Oliver. I'm sure you can do anything you put your mind to."

The genuine softness in her voice and eyes struck him hard. She really believed those words. It was the first time he'd had anyone believe in him, even a little. He cleared his throat and continued. "Tommy stepped up when I couldn't. Or wouldn't. I know it disappointed my mother greatly when I refused. But that's just… it's not what I want my life to be."

"You don't have to justify anything to me, I understand."

Now it was his turn to lift a brow. "You do?"

Her smile faded as she stared down at her hands in her lap. He studied her profile for a minute before returning his attention to the road.

"I graduated MIT early. I think my mom always thought that I would go back to Vegas when that happened. When I told her that I got a job here, at Queen Consolidated, she was disappointed. She didn't want me moving so far away after being in Boston for so long. She wanted me to go back home, get a job in the casino she worked at. I didn't want that. So I came here."

He sensed there was more to that particular story, but she didn't offer it and he wasn't going to ask. Clearly, it made her uncomfortable to talk about it.

"What about your dad? I'm sure he was supportive, right?"

A sad smile appeared. "I'm sure he would be, if he was still alive."

Oliver closed his eyes and groaned internally. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. He died when I was little so… it's fine."

The sudden silence that descended over them told Oliver that it was anything but fine. Feeling bad for bringing it up, he reached across and covered her hand with his. "Felicity, I'm sure that wherever your dad is, he is immensely proud of the person you've become."

She swallowed hard as tears welled in her eyes. "Thank you. I have a feeling that yours would be proud of you too."

He drew his hand back to the steering wheel and scoffed, knowing that she couldn't possibly understand why he would find that hard to believe. He wasn't what she thought. He'd returned from that island a changed man. If she knew him, the _real_ him, she would run a mile and never look back. For some reason, the thought of her doing that filled him with a sadness he couldn't understand. He barely knew this woman. She was engaged to his brother, he should not be having these kinds of thoughts.

"Tell me about your dad." He said, unable to stop the words before they left his mouth. But he found himself wanting to know more about her, about where she came from. And this time it wasn't because he wanted to catch her out.

For a moment he thought maybe he'd upset her again, but she leaned her head back against the headrest and sighed. Her lips tilted up into a sad smile. "He was… he was the best. We spent so much time together. I never had any brothers or sisters so it was just him and me. He taught me about computers, taught me how to build one from scratch. I made my first full computer by the time I was six."

The pride in her voice made him smile. "So you're like… scary smart, huh?"

She threw a mock glare at him. "Scary smart? Well, if a high IQ scares you, you should see me in action, you'd be positively terrified."

He let out a bark of laughter. "I would love to see you in action."

"Play your cards right and you just might." Her eyes widened for a second before she ducked her head, but not fast enough to hide the faint blush creeping up her cheeks. It really was quite adorable.

"So tell me more about where you grew up." Oliver asked as he concentrated on the slippery road that led to her apartment.

"You've become Mr. Chatty this evening."

He lifted one shoulder in a half shrug. "I spent five years on an island; conversation was hard to come by." He didn't add that this was the most he'd talked to anyone in the past six years. Something about her just made him want to open up. To reveal things that no one else knew. But it also made him want to discover everything about her.

"I guess it was." There was that look again. It wasn't pity, but there was a sadness in her eyes that revealed her feelings about what he'd gone through. She quickly masked it and smiled. "Well, I grew up in Vegas, there's really not much to tell. Though I am banned from about three major casinos now."

"Really?"

"Yeah, apparently they frown on card counting. But in my defence, I didn't realise that I was doing it. Well, mostly."

Oliver laughed at her sheepish grin as he pulled the car up alongside her apartment building and cut the engine. "I can't quite imagine you as a ruthless card counter."

Her eyes narrowed, but her smile remained. "Why?"

"Because you're so… good." _Too good for you,_ he thought grimly.

"I… don't even know how to respond to that. What exactly does 'so good' even mean?"

He angled his body so that he was facing her. As he stared into her eyes, all his previous worries of her being a gold digger, or someone that could hurt his family, flew out of his mind. "You just seem like the kind of person who wouldn't hurt a fly."

Chuckling, she poked him in the chest with one finger. "I'll have you know that I can be bad when the need arises."

He knew her words were innocent, but that didn't stop the heat rising in the pit of his stomach. Her laughter faded, bringing with it a silence that made the air around them grow thick. Their eyes connected, and lingered, and his fingers itched with the need to touch her cheek, to find out if her skin felt as soft as it looked.

When she let out a tiny cough, it forced both of them back to reality. She nodded towards the building. "This is me. I'd better go."

He was out of the car before she'd even fully opened her door. Holding it open for her to exit, he smiled down at her.

"You don't have to walk me all the way, you know?" She chuckled as he followed her to the opening of the courtyard.

He knew he was being ridiculous, that nothing would happen to her in the yard of her own apartment building. But his mind's eye kept conjuring the image of her fear, and he wouldn't rest until he'd seen her get inside safely. "I've come this far, might as well go the rest of the way. Besides, this looks dangerously slippery."

She looked down at the concrete that was covered in a thin layer of ice. "Yeah, Mr Seldon always forgets that winter also extends past the main door."

She took a tentative step onto the path, paused, and when she was sure that she had her balance, moved forward slowly. Oliver stepped up behind her, planting his feet carefully. Why didn't she tell her landlord about this? It was clearly dangerous.

"So are you gonna go see Tommy tomorrow?" She asked, turning her head to look back at him. He saw what was about to happen as her foot slipped, her whole body jerking forward. He grabbed hold of her waist to steady her, surprised when she burst out laughing.

"You okay?"

She turned in his arms so that they were face to face, but the movement made his feet lose their grip. Flailing to find his balance while keeping Felicity upright, Oliver couldn't help but laugh along with her.

"Do not take me with you!" she warned, a burst of colour hitting her pale cheeks. Whether from the cold, or the laughter, he didn't know. But he liked it. He liked it more than he should.

He tightened his hold on her waist as her hands came up to grip the shoulders of his suit jacket. Her foot slipped one more time, bringing her leg to rest in between his, her body flush up against him. As his eyes latched onto hers, their laughter slowly dimmed. She was so close that he could feel her warm breath against his face. If he just leaned in a tiny bit more, he could kiss her. It surprised him how much he wanted to do just that. And if the look in her eyes was any indication, she wanted it too.

No, that was crazy. She was engaged. He really needed to start remembering that. Slowly, he pulled away, making sure that she was set on her feet before moving. Straightening himself up, Oliver held onto her arm as they moved forward. She took one step and the next thing he knew, they were falling. He took the brunt of it, turning them so that she fell mostly on top of him. A loud ripping sound filled the air as the wind was driven from his lungs.

"Was that my pants or my muscles?" he chuckled.

"Ow!"

"Are you alright?" He asked, leaning over to check on her. He relaxed a little when her laughter filled the air again.

She crawled over to the edge, where the concrete gave way to grass, and reached her hand back to drag him with her. Once he was able to stand up straight and take stock of any injuries he might have, he looked over his shoulder at his butt. "Oh, man!"

Felicity almost doubled over with laughter when she saw the giant tear in his pants.

"Do you have any pants I can borrow?"

"If you fit into my pants I will cry."

He followed her over to the main door and stopped when she turned back to him. Her whole face was flushed pink, her eyes gleaming with tears, and he got the feeling that it had been a long time since she'd laughed that much. It had been a long time for him too, that was for sure. He couldn't even remember having this much fun before being marooned.

"Thanks for the ride." she said, her voice almost shy. "I'll see you when I see you?"

He nodded. "I'll wait till you get inside."

When she tilted her head and gave him a look so sweet, Oliver knew he was in trouble. "Goodnight, Oliver."

"Goodnight, Felicity."

Still chuckling, Felicity headed inside. He waited for a few moments, watching her as she walked up the stairs until he could no longer see her.

Shoving a hand through his hair, Oliver let out a sigh. Felicity Smoak was everything he'd never expected. But everything he feared that he needed. Tilting his head towards the sky, he groaned. From the moment she'd opened her eyes this morning, after her fainting spell, right through to this moment now, he couldn't deny it anymore. He had feelings for her. There was also no denying that nothing could ever be done about them. Tommy was his brother.

As he headed back to his car, one question played on a loop in his head. Was he falling for his brother's girl?

* * *

Felicity plodded up the stairs, feeling lighter than she had in weeks. Her heart was still pounding, and she was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even see Cooper coming down the opposite way until he stopped next to her.

"Alright Felicity, it's either me or him."

Without stopping, or even looking at Cooper, Felicity smiled. "Him."

"You… you don't have to answer right away."

As soon as she let herself into her apartment, Felicity rushed over to her sofa. Kneeling down, arms resting over the back, she watched through the window as Oliver glanced around. Probably to make sure that no one had seen him fall. Another bubble of laughter emerged when she saw him cover his butt with one hand, while walking towards his car.

This was bad, very bad. Her smile fell as she realised the implications. She had feelings for her fake fiancé's brother. As if this whole situation could be any more messed up. Oliver was a complication that she never saw coming. But even though she knew it would never work out, Felicity knew that there was no point in trying to fight it. Nope, she had to admit the truth. She liked Oliver Queen.

_**To Be Continued...**_


	5. Chapter 5

_**A/N: So sorry for the giant wait, everyone. Life's been a little problematic lately. But I'm back and I hope that you enjoy this chapter. Let me know what you think. Thanks :D**_

_**Chapter Five**_

"I'm in trouble." Felicity said, plonking herself into a seat in her boss' office early the next morning. "I'm having an affair."

Alex frowned as he leaned his elbows on his desk. "Come again?"

"I like Oliver."

"Oliver… as in Oliver Queen?" he asked, his eyebrows shooting up.

"Yes, Oliver Queen. Tommy's brother."

Alex blew out a breath. "Okay, so?"

Frustrated, Felicity threw her hands up. "So he thinks I'm engaged."

"To who?"

"To Tommy!"

Alex let out a sigh and rubbed his forehead. "Felicity, I really don't have time for this."

She shuffled forward in her chair, placing her palms down on the desk. "No, no, no, you have to tell me what to do. I am in way over my head here. I need your advice."

"You want my advice? Tell the truth."

Ugh, she just _knew_ he would say something like that. She hated that he was also right. She'd spent most of last night tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep. Images of Oliver laughing had kept her awake. He'd looked so carefree and happy, something that she hadn't seen much of since she'd met him. He always seemed so guarded and on edge. Last night, she'd seen a different side of him, and she'd really liked it.

"If I tell Oliver that I lied to his entire family, he'll never speak to me again. He didn't trust me to begin with."

"I wonder why." He replied dryly.

"And then there's Thea and Walter and Moira. Oh and Diggle too. I _really_ don't want to hurt them, Alex."

Alex shook his head. "Who's Diggle?"

"The Queen's bodyguard," she replied. "But actually, he already knows."

There was another sigh, followed by Alex pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration at her. "Felicity, you're born into a family. You don't _join _them like you do the Marines."

"Alex, you're the only one I can talk to about this. You have to tell me what to do."

"Pull the plug."

Felicity scrunched up her nose, pointing at him with her index finger. "You're sick."

Alex shrugged as he turned his attention back to the task he'd been on when she'd burst into his office. "I'm sick? You're cheating on a vegetable."

Felicity winced. Last night had thrown her for a loop. She was already dreading having to tell the Queens the truth, now it appeared that she would have a lot more to lose.

* * *

Pausing just inside the doorway of Tommy's hospital room, Oliver studied his brother. Other than the bruise on the side of his head, he was relatively unscathed. He looked peaceful, as if he was simply sleeping. He still couldn't quite believe that Felicity had willingly jumped in front of a moving vehicle to push Tommy out of the way. But then, why wouldn't she? She was in love with him.

Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Oliver crossed over to the chair next to his bed. He'd been here before, but that was when the rest of his family were there. This time, they were alone and he couldn't help wondering if Tommy would be mad about that.

"Hey buddy, it's me." Oliver leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees and clasping his hands together. "I'm sorry I haven't been around much. The club's doing really well. Opening night was a hit. You would've loved it, there were so many girls practically throwing their numbers at me."

As he realised what he'd said, Oliver's smile faded. "Then again, you probably wouldn't. Not now that you have Felicity. I've met her by the way, she seems… nice."

_Nice_, he scoffed at himself. _She's enticing._ There was something about her that called to him, no matter how much he tried to ignore it.

"Anyway, Mom says you're doing better. Thea misses you."

He closed his eyes and scrubbed a hand over his face. He couldn't sit here and make small talk, not after everything that had happened between them. "Listen, Tommy. I want to tell you that… I'm sorry. I know you're still angry with me, I understand it. But four months is a long time to go without talking to each other."

He could still hear Tommy's voice the night he'd found out his secret. Could still see the horrified look in his eyes, and the way he'd closed himself off almost immediately.

_"__You're a killer." Tommy whispered. "You're not my brother, he died on that island. I don't even know who you are anymore."_

Oliver had never forgotten those words, and although he fully understood Tommy's anger, he couldn't understand why he'd chosen to avoid his family too. They'd barely seen him at all lately, and if it hadn't been for him working at Queen Consolidated, Oliver doubted they would've seen him at all. Nobody knew what was happening in his life. A fact made evident by the sudden appearance of his fiancé.

"I just… I miss my brother. I miss my best friend." He sighed, leaning back in the chair. "You're getting married, and you never said a word. I understand you not telling me, but how could you not tell Mom or Thea?"

His thoughts once again shifted to last night, to the way Felicity's cheeks flushed from the cold and her laughter. The sparkle in her eyes as she doubled over laughing when he'd torn his pants. "Do you remember when we were kids? How inseparable we were? All the girls at school were in love with you. When we got older, and my grades started falling, the principal used to ask me, 'Why can't you be more like your brother?'"

Oliver smiled. "You know what? I was okay with that. Because after everything you went through with your parents, I was so proud of you for coming through that. My parents loved you as if you were their own. Thea adores you. I was never envious of anything that you had."

His smile dropped, images of Felicity in a white dress, walking down the aisle towards Tommy flooded his mind, leaving a hollow feeling in his chest.

"Until now."

* * *

"So, Felicity, have you and Tommy decided where you're going to go on your honeymoon?" Moira asked, as she spooned a helping of vegetables onto her plate.

Seated around the rather large table in the dining room of the Queen mansion, Felicity wondered how she'd let herself be talked into coming to dinner. Trying to keep a low profile and stay off their radar until she could tell them the truth, clearly wasn't working.

She cleared her throat, keeping her eyes cast down at her plate. "Uh…"

"I went to Cuba." Diggle said, from the opposite end. She glanced up quickly and caught his eye, smiling when she realised he was trying to help her by distracting Moira.

"Oh, that's lovely." Moira said. "You really must bring Lyla for dinner again soon. We don't see enough of her."

Diggle nodded and took a sip of his wine.

"Well I, for one, would _love _to go to Paris for my honeymoon." Thea said, her eyes taking on that dreamy gleam that often appeared whenever somebody mentioned marriage.

"I think you have quite a few years until that happens, Thea. Sorry I'm late, everybody."

Felicity's head snapped up just in time to see Oliver walk into the dining room, and that was it. Instant butterflies. She cursed him for looking that good in his black jacket and jeans that fit snugly in all the right places. How was she supposed to ignore her attraction to him if he kept doing things like that?

"You never know, Ollie. I might meet the man of my dreams tomorrow." Thea teased, bringing Felicity back to reality.

Oliver quickly kissed his mother on the cheek and then took a seat next to Thea, opposite Felicity. "As long as he's okay with meeting me."

"Please, you're not as scary as you seem to think."

"How's business going, Oliver?" Walter asked, taking a sip of his wine.

"It's really good. Last night was busier than opening night."

"I'm so proud of you sweetheart." Moira beamed.

Oliver smiled, but didn't reply. As his eyes caught Felicity's, she felt a frisson of desire hit her hard at the piercing blue gaze.

"Felicity, do you think perhaps, you could find me a nice girl for Oliver?"

"Mom!"

Moira was only joking, she hoped, but it didn't stop the wine from going down the wrong way. Felicity coughed and spluttered, snatching her napkin up to dab at her chin and somehow hide her face.

Moira placed her elbows on the table and interlaced her fingers. "I think it would be lovely if he could meet someone like you, Felicity. I just want you to have what Tommy has, Oliver. I want to see you happy."

"I am happy." Oliver replied tersely, throwing his mother a look that Felicity couldn't quite read. But then his eyes landed on her and she lost all ability to think.

"I uh… well I really wouldn't know Oliver's type." Felicity said, hoping that would put an end to the conversation.

It didn't.

"Well we all know who Felicity's type is." Thea sang, nudging her brother playfully with her arm.

"I like brunettes." Oliver stated, turning his attention to Diggle, who in turn gave him an amused look.

Thea frowned. "I thought you liked blondes."

"You thought wrong."

Felicity blinked, trying not to read too much into that. It was so confusing being around him. But at the same time, she wanted more of it. Oliver Queen was an intriguing man, and she found herself wanting to learn more about him. Much more.

* * *

It was late by the time Felicity finally managed to say her goodbyes. After the awkwardness during dinner, she'd been surprised that she'd had such a good time. They'd moved into the living room, turned down the lights, and watched a movie.

Thea curled up to her on one large sofa, while Moira and Walter sat on another, and Oliver took up the chair next to them. Diggle had already gone home to spend the evening with his wife.

Being surrounded by the warm glow of the lights adorning the large Christmas tree, and the family that was slowly working their way into her heart, Felicity had never felt more at home.

"Okay so if you need any help, you know where I am." Felicity said as she stood in the foyer, hugging Thea tightly.

"Thanks, Felicity. Mr Gunnerson isn't going to know what's hit him. I swear he thinks I'm technologically challenged."

"Computers are easy once you know the secrets. And I have a lot of them to share."

Thea laughed, hugged her one more time, and then stepped back to stand beside Walter.

Moira held out her coat and after helping her into it, she gave Felicity a hug. "Now remember dear, if you're free for New Year's we would like to see you."

"Thank you very much, I had a great time tonight."

Oliver stood by the door, silently watching as she said her goodbyes. As she neared him, Thea's excited voice rang out.

"Hey look you guys, you're under the mistletoe."

_Oh no_. This could not be good, she thought.

"Kiss her then, Oliver." Walter said cheerfully.

Oliver looked like a rabbit caught in the headlights, which would've been funny if the situation weren't so mortifying.

"It's mistletoe." Moira said, shaking her head with a chuckle. "It is tradition."

"Kiss her, idiot." Thea cheered.

Felicity felt the panic start to rise in her chest as Oliver looked down at her. Those eyes, they were so… captivating. She could spend hours just staring into them. He shrugged his shoulders in resignation, and leaned his head down.

It was brief, only lasting for a second, but it was enough to make her heart flip in her chest. The sensation of his warm lips against hers, his scruff softly scratching her chin, it was overwhelming. And that was only a peck; she couldn't imagine how good it would be to kiss him properly.

Actually, she could. And that was part of the problem.

* * *

The next evening, Oliver was ready to tackle another name on his father's list. He'd spent most of the day trying to get that kiss out of his mind, preoccupied with the thought of Felicity kissing him for real. He'd forced himself to think about anything else, but all he saw was her face. All he heard was her voice. His father's list, full of bad people who were hurting his city, was at least something he could use to distract himself. Besides, he had returned from the island with only that goal in mind, he didn't have time for anything, or anyone else.

He was just heading out the front door when he heard his mother calling him. With a loud sigh, he turned and walked into the living room. His mother sat staring out of the window, her face blank, giving nothing away.

"What's wrong?" he asked, standing in front of her.

"Take a seat, dear."

"I really have to get going, Mom. I've got a club to open and –"

"And you pay good people to deal with those sorts of things. Please, sit."

Since he couldn't exactly tell her he was going out to interrogate someone, he sat down next to her. "What's going on?"

"I'm concerned."

"About what?"

"Tommy."

"Did something happen?"

"No, he's okay." Moira turned to face him, her eyes clouded with worry. "Did something happen between the two of you?"

Oliver frowned, not liking where this was heading. "What do you mean?"

"We haven't seen much of him lately, he's been very withdrawn. But I haven't seen you have any contact at all with him. You haven't visited him much at the hospital. So I'll ask again, did something happen?"

Oliver drew in a deep, steadying breath. "Mom, there's nothing to be concerned about. I promise. Yes, Tommy and I had an argument a while ago. It wasn't serious but we both needed to take a step back and cool off. Then all this happened and…"

"What was it about?"

He shook his head, avoiding her penetrating gaze. "It's not important anymore. What is important is his recovery. Once he comes out of this, I'll make it right with him."

Moira opened her mouth to say something else, but was cut off when Thea came barrelling into the room.

"You guys are not going to believe this."

"Thea, we're in the middle of something here." Moira said, her irritation at being interrupted, evident.

"I'm sorry but I have to tell you! I went to see Felicity at Queen Consolidated today."

Oliver's ears pricked up as his mother sighed. "That's lovely sweetheart but-"

"No, Mom listen to me. I overheard her tell someone that she's pregnant!"

Oliver blinked, his heart dropping into his stomach. Felicity was pregnant?

"What do you mean? She can't be." Moira said, clearly shocked as she stood to face her daughter.

Thea explained that she'd overheard a conversation between Felicity and a co-worker but Oliver wasn't really paying attention. Before his mind could process anything, his feet were already moving towards the door.

He drove fast, faster than was strictly legal but he didn't care. He needed to know the truth. By the time he pulled up outside her apartment, his mind had already conjured up a hundred scenarios.

As he reached the door, he paused. What if what Thea said was true and she really was pregnant? Did he really have the right to question her about it? Had he been right all along and this was just some get-rich-quick scheme of hers? He'd been distrusting of her in the beginning, but that scenario didn't really seem to fit with the woman he'd gotten to know in the past few days.

But Oliver knew better than most that appearances could be deceiving. Still, he couldn't believe that she'd do something so cold and calculated.

With a resolute nod, he opened the door and headed for the stairs, pausing when he saw someone standing outside Felicity's apartment. Cooper. He had a large bunch of flowers in his hands and although he didn't hear what they said, he definitely saw the hug that followed. Deciding he'd seen enough, he went back outside, intending to leave. But once he stepped into the cold air, he remembered his reason for coming here in the first place.

_This is ridiculous, _he thought. _Just ask her._

The decision was taken out of his hands moments later when Felicity appeared at the door. Momentarily struck speechless, all he could do was stare. She looked beautiful, wearing a long, deep red dress with a slit in the side that showed off one shapely leg. His mouth went dry, imagining how soft that creamy skin would feel.

"Oliver? What are you doing here?"

He opened his mouth to speak, but he couldn't bring himself to say the words. Suddenly, he didn't want to know. Instead, he pointed at the bottle of wine in her hands. "You're going to a party."

With a puzzled look, she smiled. "Yeah, my friend's having a party tonight."

"Great, I'll drive you. Come on."

"Oh you know what? It's only around the corner. I can walk."

Oliver placed a hand on her shoulder and captured her eyes. For the briefest of moments, he felt a connection. "I insist. Come on."

She frowned again as she followed after him. "Okay but it's really not that far."

Turns out, it really wasn't that far. He drove for about two minutes before she directed him to pull over.

"Oliver, is everything okay?"

Locking his car, he followed her up the path towards a house that was practically bursting at the seams with people and decorations, and loud music. "Of course, why wouldn't it be?"

As she rang the doorbell, she threw him another puzzled glance. "You're just acting really weird."

Before he could reply to that, the door swung open and then he felt hands pulling him inside. As he was stripped of his suit jacket, he lost sight of Felicity. _Damn_.

Felicity couldn't understand what had gotten into Oliver tonight. He was acting so strange. She made her way over to the bar, smiling as she left him to the vultures surrounding him.

"Felicity… your fiancé is here?" Alex yelled to make himself heard over the music, as he appeared at her side.

"No, Oliver."

"Why did you bring Oliver?"

"I didn't _bring_ him, he followed me here."

Alex looked back to where Oliver was currently trying to pry a rather intoxicated woman's hand off his arm. With a shake of his head, he looked back down at Felicity. "So remind me again… Oliver is not your fiancé?"

"No, Tommy is."

"But Tommy doesn't even know you exist."

"I know." She winced at how crazy it all sounded when said aloud.

"So right now, Oliver is Tommy."

"I guess."

Alex threw up his hands. "Felicity, there are doctors for this kind of thing!"

With a drink in his hand, Alex walked away, leaving her standing there to contemplate his words. What was she doing? This was so crazy. And somehow, it had become her life.

As she filled a plastic cup with some punch, Oliver rushed over. "Felicity! That's spiked."

"I really hope so."

"So you shouldn't have any."

Taking a large sip, Felicity frowned. "Why not?"

Just as he opened his mouth, the music stopped. "Because… it's not good for the baby!"

Felicity froze, drink halfway to her mouth, and she was all too aware that everyone else had just heard what he'd yelled.

"What baby?"

* * *

"Felicity, wait! Will you just…?" Oliver called, running up behind her as she stormed down the sidewalk.

"Felicity!"

She whirled on him, making him stop short. "What the hell is wrong with you, Oliver? I mean, what was _that_?"

He reached out to touch her shoulder but she reared back. Instead, he ran his hand through his hair. "I'm sorry; this whole evening didn't exactly turn out well…"

Felicity was furious. She'd thought that they'd been making progress, but it seemed as if he'd never truly trust her. "Oh I'm supposed to share some responsibility in that?"

She turned on her heel and walked away, ignoring the sound of his hurried footsteps behind her. "Just slow down for a second, let me explain."

By the time she stopped, they were standing outside her apartment building. Festive music drifted over from the courtyard, where Cooper and some other residents were partying.

She crossed her arms in front of her. "So… explain."

It took Oliver a moment to begin, as if he was collecting his thoughts. Rubbing absently at the back of his neck, he raised his eyes to hers. "Look, I'm sorry. It was just a misunderstanding. And on top of the Cooper thing-"

Felicity blinked in surprise. "Excuse me?"

"It's nothing."

"No, there's no 'nothing' now. What Cooper thing?"

He looked uncomfortable. Good, she thought. "The leaning thing."

Felicity frowned, leaning sideways against the stone pillar next to him. "What leaning thing? Wait… is this because he gave me flowers?"

Oliver nodded. "And then you leaned."

She couldn't help it, a small chuckle bubbled to the surface. Because it was just so ridiculous. "I don't even know what you're talking about. How did I 'lean' when I leaned?"

Oliver's eyes locked on hers and her smile soon faded at the intensity she saw there. "Leaning is a lot different than hugging, Felicity. Hugging involves arms and hands."

She swallowed hard as he moved closer, his upper body angled towards her, one hand braced against the pillar she was leaning on. "Leaning involves wanting… and accepting…"

Her breathing grew shallow as she became lost in his gaze. He was _so_ close that there was barely any room between them.

"It's about so much more than hugging." His voice was low, soft, and entrancing, and Felicity found it increasingly difficult to maintain her anger at him.

"It's intimate, caring-"

His lips were just about to touch hers, she was sure of it, and she wondered if his pulse was racing as much as hers was right now.

"Hey, Felicity!" Cooper yelled from across the courtyard, snapping her back to reality with a resounding thud. She turned her head to look at him but didn't move away from Oliver.

"Is this guy bothering you?"

"No, no I'm fine. Thank you."

Cooper straightened the party hat on his head. "Are you sure? Because it looks like he's leaning."

"Thank you!" Oliver said, looking a little too pleased that his point had been proven. "See?"

She rolled her eyes. "I'm fine, Cooper."

Cooper nodded and began to head away, but turned back one more time to point at Oliver. "I know karate. Don't try anything."

Oliver held his hands up and nodded, but Felicity could see that he was barely holding back his laughter.

"He's quite a character."

"I told you before, he's harmless. And very sweet when he wants to be."

"Hmm, I'll bet."

Felicity tilted her head to the side and watched Oliver as he watched Cooper return to his friends. "So what about the other thing?"

"The other misunderstanding?" He stood up straight and moved back slightly.

"Mm-hmm. Why did you think I was pregnant?"

He grimaced, looking down at the ground. "Thea said that she overheard you tell a co-worker."

She groaned, remembering earlier that morning when Thea had visited her. "Oh my God. I was being sarcastic. But you believed her?"

Oliver shoved his hands into his pockets. "I didn't have any reason not to believe her, Felicity. She's my sister. She doesn't lie."

"I see." She replied dejectedly, a pit forming in her gut. "So the only reason that your brother would want to marry me is if I was pregnant."

His brows scrunched together. "I didn't say that."

She shook her head sadly. "You didn't have to, Oliver. I see it in your eyes. The only reason that the C.E.O of a fortune five-hundred company would want to marry me, is if I was carrying his child."

Ignoring the pleading look on his face, Felicity turned and walked over to the main door.

"It's just…" he called after her. "You're not really Tommy's type."

_Ouch_. "Yeah? Whose type am I then Oliver?"

He opened his mouth, but nothing came out, and somehow that hurt worse than the accusation of being pregnant. "Thanks."

"Felicity, please…"

Slamming the door shut behind her, she ran for the stairs, ignoring his yells for her to come back.

* * *

"Dammit!" Oliver stared at the door, wondering if he should go after her or not. Probably not. He'd done enough for one night. What a mess. He wouldn't be surprised if she never spoke to him again. Though that would make for an awkward family dynamic if she didn't.

As he began the short walk back to his car, he went over the conversation in his head. How had he gone from being so close to kissing her, to having her practically slam a door in his face? Or course, he knew _how_, but he didn't know why he'd let himself get to that point.

And now he'd hurt her, and that was the last thing he'd ever wanted to do. Getting into his car, he leaned forward and pressed his forehead to the steering wheel. Suddenly, going out to interrogate someone held quite an appeal.

_"__Whose type am I?" _she'd asked.

_Mine_, he thought.

_**To Be Continued...**_


	6. Chapter 6

**_Chapter Six_**

Oliver walked into the Queen Consolidated building, aware of the stares that people tried to hide. As the prodigal son returned from the dead, even a year on, he was apparently still newsworthy. He hated it. His younger self had loved all the attention, but now that he needed a little anonymity, it was a major problem.

Stepping into the elevator, he pressed the button that would take him the I.T Department. He'd debated whether to come here for the past day and a half. But his investigation into one of the people on his father's list was going nowhere. Though he hated to admit it, he needed help. Unfortunately, the kind of help he needed, he couldn't get from Diggle.

So here he was, about to step into… well he didn't exactly know what. It had been two days since he'd seen Felicity. Two days since he'd insulted and hurt her. Since she'd ignored all his calls, he was willing to bet she was still pissed at him. Rightfully so, but he really didn't have any other options right now. But more than that, he'd just missed her.

Exiting the elevator, he quickly made his way to her office, but his ears picked up the chatter from the cubicles. It was mostly idle gossip, but there were a few who were wondering if he was here to take his rightful place as the CEO. With Tommy out of commission, it was the logical next step.

With a shake of his head, he raised his fist to knock on the door, before realising that it was already open. Stepping inside, he saw Felicity sitting at her desk, head bowed, engrossed in whatever task she was currently working on.

Tilting his head, he took advantage of her distraction to study her for a moment. What was it about her that called to him? For some reason, he found himself drawn to her. But why?

She was just… _Felicity_.

"Hey." He said softly, but she jerked in her seat as her eyes flew up to his.

"Oliver! What the…?" she drew in a calming breath. "Don't you knock?"

He couldn't help it, the way she held the tablet against her as some sort of shield made him smile. "Felicity." He loved just saying her name. The sound was… somehow soothing to him. "This isn't the ladies' room."

Arching one perfectly shaped brow at him, she turned back to her tablet. "So what brings you by? Am I having twins now?"

"Okay, I deserved that."

"You think?"

"For what it's worth, I never meant to imply that-"

"That your brother would never look at a girl like me unless I was carrying his offspring?"

Frustrated, he blew out a breath. "Could you stop interrupting for maybe five seconds and just let me apologise?"

He thought he saw a ghost of a smile appear, but couldn't be sure since she wouldn't actually look at him. He took a seat opposite her and waited. When the silence finally got to her, she glanced up. "Look, I know what I said was wrong. You have every right to be mad at me. But I _am_ sorry, Felicity. It was never my intention to hurt you. I think that uh… I think Tommy is a really lucky guy."

She stared at him for a few moments, and he found himself wondering who had hurt her so much in the past that she had such a low opinion of herself. The thought did not sit well with him at all.

Eventually, she leaned back in her chair and sighed. "I forgive you, Oliver."

"Really?" He hadn't been expecting that.

Her ponytail bounced around the base of her neck as she nodded. "I guess I can't really hold it against you. Thea overheard a joke I made, and I've been told that my sense of humour is a little… hit and miss."

Feeling relieved, but not sure why, Oliver smiled. "Thank you."

She pointed to the object sitting on his lap. "Why do you have a laptop on your knee?"

He'd forgotten about that. The minute her eyes had locked onto his, all thoughts of his current mission had flown out of his head. Which was _not_ a good thing. Felicity Smoak was distracting him at a time when the city needed him to focus the most. Having her as a sister-in-law was definitely going to be a test, and he had a feeling it would be his biggest challenge yet.

"Uh… I can't get it to work. I was hoping that maybe-"

"Ah, I see how it is. Cosy up to me and apologise in order to get my help with something."

"No! That's not…" he trailed off when he realised that she was grinning at him.

"Relax, Oliver. I'm kidding. What's wrong with it?"

"Everything. I can't get it to turn on and there are some important files that I need. I was hoping that you could work some magic."

Oliver bit back a chuckle as Felicity cracked her fingers, barely hiding the wince that followed, and reached her hand out for the laptop. Slowly, he handed it over, waiting for her reaction.

She didn't disappoint. Her jaw dropped as she turned it over and inspected it. "What did you do to it?"

As she surveyed the damage, she looked as if he'd personally insulted her… _again_.

"I… spilt a latte on it."

Pursing her lips, Felicity levelled him with a stare. "Oliver, these are bullet holes."

He really hadn't thought this through. Felicity was too smart to be fooled by that, but he couldn't tell her the truth. "My coffee shop is in a bad neighbourhood."

Felicity opened her mouth to say something, but it died on her lips as she shook her head and sighed. She suspected something though, that much he could tell. "Okay, so what kind of files am I looking for?"

Oliver shook his head in relief that she wasn't pushing the subject. He really didn't think he could've thought of another excuse. At least not one that was better than the first, anyway. For some reason, rational thinking around Felicity proved difficult.

"Anything you can get."

* * *

She shouldn't be here. It was a bad idea. Moira and Thea were expecting her at their annual New Year's Eve party later and she had nothing suitable to wear. It had been the only thing on her mind for most of the day.

So Felicity had planned to go shopping straight after work, because she just knew that people would be staring at her all night. Tommy's new fiancée would be a popular topic. She'd tried to get out of going, but Thea's pleading eyes wouldn't let her.

Instead, here she was, sitting in her car in the alley behind Oliver's new club. She knew it wasn't due to open for another few hours, but she hoped that Oliver would be there long before that.

After going through the damaged laptop, she'd been surprised to learn that it actually didn't belong to him. And the few files that she'd been able to retrieve were a little alarming. What was he up to? Why did he have someone else's laptop? And why would Oliver Queen need someone's financial records? Each time she found something new, another question popped up.

Confronting him about it had seemed like a good idea at the time, but now, as she sat waiting, it seemed silly. She doubted he would tell her what was going on, and he seemed like a man with many secrets.

_This is ridiculous_, she thought, reaching forward to start her engine up. She needed to find a dress to wear. Before she could turn the key, movement from outside the car caught her eye. She gasped as a large shape emerged from the shadows next to her door. Swallowing hard, Felicity froze, her hands gripping the steering wheel tightly. Fear rose up in her throat as he came closer, but she couldn't see his face beneath the large hood. Then it all clicked.

It was him. The Hood. The man who'd rescued her a few nights ago. She watched as he staggered over to the wall, collapsing against it and sinking to the ground. He was hurt.

Without another thought, she grabbed her bag, jumped out of her car and ran over to him, crouching a few feet away. "Hey, are… are you okay?"

He raised his head, only slightly, and grunted. Blood seeped out from a hole just beneath his collarbone, and Felicity had no idea what to do. She didn't think he'd want her to call an ambulance, but watching him die wasn't an option either.

"We need to get you to a hospital." She said, leaning forward to see just how badly he was hurt. His hand shot out and grabbed her wrist and she barely held back a scream.

"No hospitals." He groaned, his voice thick with pain.

"No offence, but you need help and I'm not exactly a doctor."

"No hospitals!" His breathing became shallow as his grip on her wrist loosened. "Downstairs, basement. Get help."

She sat back on her heels, unsure of what to do. But when his hand snaked out and covered hers, gently this time, she paused.

"Please, Felicity."

Alarm bells sounded in her head. "How do you know my name?"

There was a long pause before he reached up and pulled down his hood. "Because you know my name."

Her eyes widened. "Oh my God. Oliver?"

He was panting now, his breathing getting worse by the minute. But his eyes… they locked onto hers and the sudden vulnerability she saw there shook her to the core. "Wow, everything just became so clear."

"Felicity, please. Go downstairs, get help."

"I can't just leave you lying in the street. What if someone sees you?"

He opened his mouth to respond but Felicity held up a hand. "Come on, you have to get up."

"Felicity…" he grumbled as she began pulling on his hands.

"Get up!" she yelled, the panic rising in her chest as more blood seeped out of his chest. "If you want my help, you have to help _me_ first so please, Oliver, get your ass up!"

With a slow nod, Oliver eased himself up, using her hands for leverage. It took a lot longer than she wanted it to, and it was hard, but eventually they managed to get him on his feet. With her arm around his waist and his around her shoulders, Felicity helped him over to the side entrance.

"I had no idea this was even here." She muttered as he entered the code with trembling fingers.

"Kinda. The. Point." He said, gasping between words. As the door slammed shut behind them, Felicity felt his weight pressing on her even more.

"Oliver?" Glancing up, she saw his eyes roll back into his head before he sagged completely, and she had no option but to let gravity do its job. There was no way she could continue holding him up.

"Oliver!" Dropping to her knees, she leaned over his body, one hand covering the wound on his chest. He was barely breathing.

"Hold on, okay? I'll get help." She took one last look at him, silently pleading for him not to die while she was gone, then turned and ran for the door.

Bursting through, she came to a stop when she noticed someone sitting at a computer station. "Excuse me… can you help me?"

Shock and confusion hit her as the person turned and levelled a gun directly at her. "Diggle?"

"Felicity?" He shot out of his seat and marched over to her, his eyes taking in the blood on her coat. "Are you okay? What's happened?"

"It's Oliver. He's hurt badly and I can't… he's really heavy."

"Where is he?"

She pointed towards the door. "He's back there."

As Diggle moved away, she quickly grabbed his wrist. "Diggle, please save him."

A brief smile appeared. "I always do."

* * *

Felicity couldn't take her eyes off Oliver's face. She tried to listen to what Diggle was telling her, but she just couldn't focus. Oliver Queen was The Hood. The shock of discovering that still hadn't worn off. But thinking back, it made a lot of sense.

She knew now why he'd always seemed so guarded, so secretive. She'd just naturally assumed that it was a by-product of returning from the island. He also seemed very lonely. That thought made her heart ache as she took hold of his hand.

"Felicity! Are you listening to me?" Diggle snapped, leaning across Oliver's body to grab her wrist.

His face softened when she looked up with wide eyes. "I need you to focus, okay? He'll be fine but we have to move fast. Are you with me?"

Her eyes landed once again on Oliver's face, and she had to resist the urge to touch him. "What do you need me to do?"

Diggle placed her hand over the large white gauze pad on Oliver's now bare chest. "Keep pressure on the wound. Press hard, it'll help stop the bleeding."

She blinked slowly as the blood seeped out between her fingers, and pressed down harder. Diggle moved around so fast that he was almost a blur to her.

"Is he going to be okay?" she asked._ Please say yes._

Diggle paused for a moment and stared at her. "He's come through a lot worse before."

His words were not as reassuring as maybe he'd hoped, and Felicity tried to force the bad images of Oliver dying right in front of her, out of her mind. She concentrated on Diggle, watching as he went about gathering the supplies for stitching the wound.

"This is becoming a habit for you, isn't it?"

Her head shot up. "Hmm?"

Diggle smiled. "First Tommy, now Oliver. You're quite the hero. I might have to watch my back; you'll be taking my job if I'm not careful."

"Oh, I'm no hero. I did what anyone else would've done." Looking back down at Oliver, Felicity felt something twist in her gut. Was it bad that she'd forgotten all about Tommy tonight? She'd never been more grateful that Diggle knew the truth. "This is such a mess. I never meant for any of this to happen."

"Sometimes things have a way of spiralling out of our control. It doesn't make you a bad person."

"Are you sure about that?" she scoffed. "I'm lying to these wonderful people who've been nothing but kind to me."

"You have a good heart, Felicity. That's what they see, that's what they've come to love. You have them to lean on now."

She shook her head sadly, a nagging feeling rising in her chest. "I don't have anybody."

Diggle gently nudged her hand away and removed the gauze, moving quickly to start stitching before Oliver could lose any more blood. To get out of his way, Felicity moved over to the other side, her hand automatically seeking Oliver's.

"We'll figure it out, Felicity. Don't worry. You're not alone anymore."

She nodded in response, but stayed quiet, letting him work.

By the time he was finished, Felicity was deep in her own thoughts, but she hadn't taken her eyes off Oliver once. What was she even doing here? She'd come to confront him about that damn laptop, now she was sitting in some kind of lair, holding onto the Hood's hand and praying he didn't die.

"How long have you known?" she asked, looking up at Diggle as he removed his gloves. She made a sweeping gesture with her hand. "About Oliver and… all of this."

"About a month after the Hood made his first appearance."

"So what… now you just help him?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "Felicity, this city is not what it used to be. There are people, bad people, whose only goal is to cause harm. I was shocked when I found out the truth, but I can't deny that he is making a difference."

"He killed people." She whispered, that annoyingly truthful voice in the back of mind finally making itself known.

Diggle pursed his lips thoughtfully. "True, but so have I. When you're standing between innocent people and the ones who are trying to hurt them, you do what you think is the right thing. Sometimes the line between right and wrong is a lot less clear than you think."

_Food for thought_, she thought to herself. Still holding onto Oliver's hand, Felicity glanced around the dark lair. There were various arrows lying around, some equipment on one metal table and a couple of computers on another.

"Is he going to be okay?"

Diggle nodded, placing a hand on her shoulder. "He's gonna be fine. He's lucky you came along when you did. Listen, I have to go out and get some more pain meds. We're running low and he's going to need them when he wakes up. Are you okay here?"

She nodded, unable to look away from Oliver's sleeping face.

"You sure?"

"I'll watch him. You go."

Settling down in her chair, she finally allowed herself to let go of his hand and just look at him. What was it about Oliver Queen that made her feel this way? The attraction she felt surprised her and it scared her. Because now more than ever, she was aware that nothing could ever happen between them. For one thing, she was 'engaged' to his brother. And eventually, that was going to blow up in her face.

And what would she do then? All she would be left with was possible unemployment, and longing for a man that she could never have.

Her gaze fell to his chest, to the scars that littered his skin. She wondered how he'd gotten them, some were fresh, but most were old. It hurt her to think of him in any situation where he'd been in pain. Scared and alone, maybe even tortured. What the hell had happened to him on that island?

Blowing out a long breath, Felicity stood, unable to sit still for much longer. After leaning over to check that Oliver was still breathing, despite the heart monitor telling her he was, she moved around the table. Her eyes went straight to his table of computers and a laptop that had definitely seen better days.

She frowned at the setup, and it physically pained her to see such a poor system. Without thinking about it, she took a seat and began to work.

* * *

The first thing Oliver noticed when he opened his eyes was the searing pain in his chest. It took him a moment to adjust, but once he realised that he was alive, the pain became a little more bearable. Better to be alive and in pain than dead.

The second thing he noticed was the sound of someone typing. With a wince, he turned his head and saw Felicity sitting a few feet away, hunched over a laptop, fingers flying over the keys.

_She stayed._

He blinked in surprise, barely able to remember the events that led to her being down here with him. Learning that he was the Hood had to have been a huge shock, the media's coverage of him was not exactly inspiring, yet she'd helped him anyway.

Pressing a hand lightly to his wound, he sat up silently, wanting to watch her for a minute or two while she was distracted. She'd tied her hair back into a low ponytail, with little tendrils escaping here and there. Her glasses perched halfway on her nose, and her shoes had been discarded next to the desk.

Oliver couldn't help the smile that formed at the sight in front of him. _She stayed._

But it soon faded when he realised that he had no idea what her reaction was going to be. Would she walk out? Had she waited around to see that he was okay, and then walk away because he now disgusted her? She was a good person, too good for him. He couldn't expose her to this kind of life. It felt wrong.

A little voice in the back of his mind also reminded him that Tommy wouldn't allow it either. In fact, he was pretty sure that his brother would flip if he found out.

Slowly, he lowered his feet to the ground, tentatively putting his weight first on one foot, and then the other. Once he'd gotten his bearings, he shuffled over to her. One glance over her shoulder told him she'd been hard at work for however long he'd been out. It was like a completely new system, one that he didn't recognise.

"That's a lot of work." He said, his voice sounding hoarser than he'd anticipated. A soft 'eep' escaped her as she jumped out of her chair and whirled around.

"Oliver! I swear I am going to put a bell around your neck!" she yelled, pressing a hand to her heart dramatically. Then her eyes flew to his and widened. "Oh my God, you shouldn't be on your feet. Here, sit down."

"Felicity, I'm-"

"If you say you're fine I'm going to hit you, which would be counterproductive to all the saving Diggle and I just did. Sit. Now."

He did as ordered and let her guide him into the seat she'd just vacated. It didn't escape his notice that he was a grown man and a vigilante on the side, being ordered around by a tiny blonde who was half his size.

Resting a hand on his good shoulder, Felicity quickly checked his dressing. He studied her face, mere inches from his as her delicate fingers skimmed across his skin, leaving a trail of goosebumps that he tried to ignore.

But oh, she was beautiful. And she smelled amazing.

"Well I don't think you pulled any stitches, but then again, I'm not a medical expert or anything." As she turned her head, their eyes connected and Oliver was sure that he heard a small gasp from her. Her gaze fluttered down to his lips once, before she straightened up and placed her hands on her hips. "How are you feeling?"

"Well… I'm not dead, so that's a plus."

"Don't joke about that, Oliver. You really scared me back there."

He cleared his throat and his expression, looking down at his own blood covering her chest and neck. "Sorry. I'm okay, Felicity. Where's Diggle?"

"He said he had to go get some more pain meds. Are you in a lot of pain? It looks painful, I mean I don't know if he already gave you some or if I should-"

Reaching out, he grabbed hold of one of her flailing hands. "Felicity, I'm fine. Really. Thank you for helping me, but I am sorry that I had to involve you in any of this."

He could see that she wanted to say something but was holding herself back. "What is it?"

Her tongue peeked out, licking slowly across her lower lip and his eyes followed the action. "You're… him. The Hood."

Ah, there it was. Steeling himself for the inevitable 'you're a killer' line, Oliver waited nervously. Because as true as it was, he really didn't want to hear those words from her. He hung his head, waiting for the vitriol to begin.

"Thank you, Oliver."

His head shot up. "What for?"

A small smile appeared as she touched his forearm. "You saved me the other night. That _was_ you, right?"

He nodded, his mind unable to process what he was hearing.

"I don't know what would've happened if you hadn't shown up so… thank you."

"You're welcome."

Perching herself on the edge of the table, Felicity folded her arms and waited. For what, he wasn't sure.

"Why aren't you more… shocked?"

"Oh believe me I was. It's not every day you find your… friend lying in a pool of blood. It's also not every day you find out that he's the city's most wanted vigilante either."

"It doesn't bother you?" he asked, his curiosity burning a hole right through him. Because, how could it _not_ bother her?

Her lips tilted up into a half smile. "No. It actually explains a lot. The laptop, the awful lies-"

"They weren't that-"

Her hand flew up in the air. "Oh please, Oliver. I saw through them in about five seconds flat." She pointed back to herself. "Genius, remember? Did you really think that I wouldn't at least be suspicious?"

He pointed a finger at her and opened his mouth to respond, but then snapped it shut again. "I guess not."

"So who else knows about you? I got to say, Diggle was a big surprise."

He chuckled softly, and then winced at the sharp pain it sent up and into his shoulder. "When I first got back from the island, I was going to do all of this by myself."

"What changed?" she asked, genuinely interested and Oliver had to tell that annoying voice in the back of his mind to shut up. This didn't mean anything. Her being here didn't mean anything. _She's Tommy's girl, back off. _

"I guess I needed help."

"Does Tommy know?"

Oliver tried to swallow past the lump in his throat at the mention of Tommy. He'd messed up so much with him and he had no idea if he'd ever get a chance to repair that damage. He nodded, staring down at the ground. "I'm surprised he didn't tell you."

Felicity frowned. "Why would he? It's not his secret to tell. But… I take it he didn't react well?"

Oliver huffed out a breath. "You could say that."

Shifting a little closer, Felicity reached down and placed her hand over his. "Is that why you've barely visited him at the hospital?"

He bristled at her tone. "He doesn't want me there, Felicity, trust me."

"How do you know that? Have you even tried to talk to him? I'm sure whatever it is will blow over soon enough."

His chest ached with the amount of shame he felt, and Felicity's soft gaze only made it worse. "You don't know that. How could you?"

"I know that he's your brother, and your family is very close and-"

"And what? Spending the week with my family does not make you an expert, Felicity. And being engaged to my brother after three months of dating doesn't mean you know anything about my relationship with him either."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he regretted them. His harsh tone made her face fall and the hurt he saw in her clear blue eyes affected him more than it should.

Felicity straightened her spine and stepped back to grab her purse. "You're right, Oliver. I don't know about your relationship with Tommy. But I do know that you've been best friends your whole lives. Don't let this ruin that."

As she walked away, Oliver looked up at the ceiling, cursing himself for hurting her. Why did he keep doing that? After everything she'd done, she didn't deserve that. "Felicity."

She stopped near the foot of the metal staircase that led up into the club. "How do I get out of here?"

Standing slowly, he walked over to her, grabbing her elbow to turn her around to face him. "I'm sorry, Felicity."

She shrugged her shoulders and smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "It's okay. You were right. It was none of my business."

"You're Tommy's fiancée; it's sort of your business now."

A look flashed across her face, something sad, but it was gone before he could analyse it.

"Right, yes. Look, I don't want to get in the middle of anything with you and Tommy. So let's just drop it. Right now, you should not be on your feet."

She grabbed his arm with both hands and started leading him back over to the chair he'd just vacated. "Sit and rest for a while. Wait for Diggle to get back with the pain meds. No crime-fighting for you tonight."

Oliver couldn't stop staring at her. She was amazing, he'd yelled at her, made her almost walk out and yet here she was, still taking care of him.

If he wasn't in trouble before, he definitely was now.

* * *

"So what did you do to my computer system?" Oliver asked, shifting to get a little more comfortable in the chair.

Felicity, sitting to his left, glanced over at him. "I improved it. You're welcome by the way."

He frowned. "What was wrong with it before?"

Her jaw dropped. "Oliver, it looked like it was from the eighties, and not the good part. It's more functional this way, and don't worry, I can show you exactly how it runs."

"Does that mean…?"

Turning away from the monitors, Felicity gave him her full attention. "What?"

He actually looked a little sheepish, which Felicity didn't even know was possible for Oliver Queen. "Does it mean what?"

His eyes flickered to hers, and then back to the computers. "That you'll be sticking around? At least, to help me learn this."

Her eyebrows rose. "You mean as in, join your crusade?"

He frowned and quickly shook his head. "No, Tommy would kill me if I let anything happen to you."

Each time he mentioned Tommy's name, her entire body froze. It was a constant reminder not to get too close, and she wondered if it was the same for Oliver. He seemed to take every possible opportunity to bring Tommy into the conversation. Almost as if he was using it as some sort of shield against her.

"Tommy is not my boss." Felicity cringed at her words. "Well, I mean, he _technically _is, but he's not the boss of me. I am perfectly capable of making my own decisions, Oliver."

"I know that, Felicity."

Oliver's eyes zeroed in on hers and for the briefest of moments, she forgot how to breathe. The intensity in them was overwhelming. Yes, he was handsome, and gorgeous, and he had a body that could make a grown woman cry. But he was out of her league, and she _had_ to remember that. There was no way he would ever forgive her when the truth came out.

That last thought was sobering, and she sat back in her chair, deflated. "I guess I can run through the changes I made."

All too aware that he was still staring at her, Felicity moved to type something on the keyboard, but he leaned forward at the same time, skimming his fingers along her forearm. The gentle friction left a trail of tingles in its wake.

"Felicity, why did you come here tonight?"

She closed her eyes at the husky sound of his voice. It did things to her that she didn't want to look too closely at.

"Not that I'm not grateful, but why are you here?"

With a small sigh, she reached over the desk and took a laptop out of her bag. "I came to talk to you about the laptop you brought me. I had some questions about it."

Suddenly, he was all business. "Did you manage to salvage anything from it?"

"A little." She watched him carefully for his reaction. "Enough to figure out that it isn't actually your laptop."

His gaze flew to hers. "I can explain that."

She chuckled and gestured around the lair. "I think this is explanation enough. I don't think I need to know any more details. But…"

He tilted his head, giving her the most adorable look she'd ever seen on a man. "But what?"

"Are you going to kill him?" she blurted. "I mean, not that I'm saying you would but… you are a vigilante and you do kind of have a reputation and… I am going to stop talking. Right now."

She shook her head and pursed her lips, cursing her inability to just stop talking. She knew what she was saying, that each word only made it worse but she didn't possess that filter. The one that told people when to stop. But to her surprise, Oliver shook his head and grinned.

"No, I am not going to kill him, Felicity. I just needed some information on him. But you should know that he is not a nice man. He has extorted money from people, innocent people. He has taken their entire life savings, left some of them homeless, and I have to stop him. That's all."

"You don't have to explain to me-"

Softly, he grasped her hand in his. "Listen to me, Felicity. I don't go out with the intention of hurting anyone. But when I put on that hood, it's kill or be killed."

A dark shadow crossed his face and she wondered where his mind went in that moment.

"I've done things that I'm not proud of, things that I regret. But they were all things that were necessary for me to survive."

Felicity squeezed his hand, trying to give him some kind of support but she could see that he was lost in whatever memory his mind had conjured. "Hey, look at me."

He did, but it seemed like he was looking through her rather than at her. With a surge of boldness, she reached up and cupped his cheek. "You survived, Oliver. You're alive and you're home."

Her eyes fell to his chest, to the scars that marred his otherwise perfect skin. Her fingers itched to trace them, but that was not her place. "You've obviously been through a lot."

Seeing what she was looking at, Oliver reared back and practically jumped out of his seat. She watched as he crossed over to the med table, holding the grey blanket tightly around his torso.

She stood up, making her way over to him slowly so as not to overwhelm him. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-"

He whirled around so fast that she stopped in her tracks. "No. Don't be. I just…"

The haunted look in his eyes tore through her, erasing any thought that this was wrong, that she should keep her distance. She reached out for his hand, grateful that he let her take it.

For a moment he simply stared at her, and she could see his mind working hard to understand what was happening right now. All she wanted to do was hug him, and it was almost a physical pain in her chest that she couldn't do that.

"I've done a lot of bad things, Felicity. Doing this, going after criminals…" he trailed off and shook his head.

"It's your way of trying to make up for it." She smiled sadly when he looked up at her. "Oliver, I haven't known you very long, but I do know that you are not a bad person. You have a good heart."

He scoffed, but she refused to let him dismiss her words. Placing her hand on his chest, over the blanket, she whispered. "You have a _good heart_; you need to start believing that. Whatever happened to you out there, it does not define who you are."

He stared at her, right into her eyes and her pulse kicked up a notch. When he raised his hand to brush a strand of hair away from her forehead, she had to bite her lip. He was close, so close that she could see his eyes darken. His eyebrows rose slightly as if he were asking permission for something.

She felt the shift, like a charge in the air around them and she knew what was about to happen. She knew, and she was powerless to stop it. _He's going to kiss me,_ she thought. With his hand clasped tightly around hers, she tilted her head back.

"Felicity." She loved the way he said her name. It was like a complete sentence all in one word. It took her a moment to realise that he had pulled back. "Your phone is ringing."

"Oh… oh!" Stepping back, she let go of his hand and reached into her back pocket. She almost groaned when she saw who was calling her. "It's your mom. She's expecting both of us to be at her party by now."

Oliver frowned as she raised the phone to her ear. "Moira, I'm so sorry. I know I'm running late but something came up and I-"

Felicity froze as Moira interrupted her, her eyes widening as she listened to the older woman's excited voice. "Oh my… that's fantastic! Uh, I'm on my way right now."

Ending the call, Felicity stared at her phone, fear gripping her heart in an iron fist.

"Felicity, what is it?" Oliver asked, one hand reaching out to cup her shoulder. "What's wrong?"

She looked up at him, at the concern written all over his face. Drawing in a deep breath, she tried to smile through her nerves. Because as scary as this was for her, it was great news for Oliver and his family.

"Tommy's awake."


	7. Chapter 7

**_Chapter Seven_**

Felicity couldn't stop her hands shaking as she rode the elevator up to Tommy's hospital room. With Diggle on one side and Oliver on the other, she tried to keep her fear at bay. But she knew this was it. This was the moment where her lies were exposed. The moment she would lose everything she'd come to love.

But it was never hers to lose, was it? She'd inadvertently tricked her way into this family and now the consequences were staring her right in the face.

Tension clawed at her gut, making her feel sick as she pressed a hand against her belly. She could feel Diggle's eyes on her; silently assessing, but Oliver was strangely quiet. He'd barely said a word since they left the lair.

"Hey, are you sure you should be here?" she asked, concerned that he looked a little pale. "You should be resting."

He threw her a tight smile. "I'm fine."

"Are you? Because you don't look fine. Your mother is going to sense that something is wrong. And if she doesn't, Thea definitely will."

He exhaled through his nose as he looked down at her. "Felicity, stop worrying."

"Sorry, I can't help it. An hour ago, you were lying on a table, bleeding out. Now you're walking around like nothing happened."

His eyes narrowed slightly at her words, as if he sensed that she meant more than just his quick recovery. She had no doubt in her mind that he'd been about to kiss her right before that phone call. Part of her hated that it hadn't happened. Because at least then she would have something to remember him by once he walked out of her life.

Felicity gulped as Oliver reached out and touched her neck, his thumb tracing over her pulse point. What was he doing? Diggle was standing right there! Before she could protest or move away, he lowered his hand.

"You missed a spot," he said, his face blank as he pulled a tissue out of his pocket to wipe away what his thumb couldn't.

"Oh." She felt a little foolish. After waiting for Oliver to change out of his suit, Diggle had driven them both to the hospital, only stopping for a short time at her apartment for her to change her clothes. But in her haste, she'd obviously missed some of the blood on her neck. She swallowed hard as Oliver wiped the rest of it away, making sure to keep his distance from her as much as possible.

The elevator pinged, signalling their arrival and Felicity's stomach leapt up into her chest. The flurry of activity around the room told her that everyone was already in there, and she was officially doomed.

Oliver walked in first; trying hard to hide a wince as a tearful Thea threw herself into his arms. Felicity held back, pulling Diggle to the side. "Diggle!"

"Hey, calm down. We'll figure this out."

Her eyes widened in panic as she gripped his coat sleeves. "How? How are we possibly going to figure this out?"

Holding onto her elbows, Diggle smiled. "I'll handle it."

"You?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I'll tell them. They can't stay mad at me. I've known them too long. Plus I'm just too adorable."

Felicity knew he was trying to lighten the mood, but it wasn't working. As the others began to look towards the door, Moira's beaming smile widened when she spotted her. _Time to face the music._

Pressing her lips together firmly, Felicity inhaled through her nose, dragging in a deep, calming breath. Diggle's hand fell into place on her lower back as he followed her into the room, whether to offer support or stop her from bolting, she didn't know.

"Oh, Felicity!" Thea cried, grabbing both of her hands in hers. "He's finally awake! He's going to be okay."

"He doesn't look like he's awake." Oliver pointed out, standing on the opposite side of the bed with his arms folded across his chest.

Moira turned her head to smile at her son. "He fell asleep again before we got here. But the doctor assured me that he is out of the coma and doing well."

Felicity watched Oliver as he glanced down at his brother. His expression was dark, and she wondered why he wasn't happier with the news. She remembered the look on his face when he'd told her about his argument with Tommy, but this didn't seem to be the same reaction.

Thea, still gripping her hand tightly, pointed towards the bed. "Guys, he's waking up!"

Slowly, Tommy's eyes fluttered open. He stared at the ceiling for a moment before lowering his eyes to the person standing closest. "Mom."

"Oh, my beautiful boy." Moira cried, gently leaning over him to kiss his cheek. "We were so worried."

Walter patted his hand, smiling as he wrapped an arm around his wife's shoulders. "Good to have you back, son."

Tommy frowned, coughing to clear his throat. "Thanks. What happened?"

"You had an accident sweetheart and you hit your head." Moira replied, dabbing just under her eyes with a tissue that Walter offered her.

Tommy's eyes darkened as they fell on Oliver, who was still standing with his arms crossed. Without saying anything to him, Tommy looked to Diggle next. "Digg. How's the babysitting going?"

Felicity saw Diggle frown slightly before hiding it behind a smile, and she felt as if she were missing something. Did Tommy know that Diggle knew Oliver's secret? It certainly appeared that way.

"It'd be a whole lot easier if you guys would stop getting yourselves run over."

Tommy chuckled. "Well, gotta keep you on your toes."

Thea sniffled as he looked at her, and she let go of Felicity's hand to take Tommy's. "I really thought we were going to lose you."

As she leaned her head on his shoulder, Tommy dropped a kiss into her hair. "I'm never leaving you sis. I promised you that, remember?"

Thea straightened, and then playfully slapped his arm. "Well learn to look both ways before crossing a street, you idiot."

Felicity's whole body turned to ice as she realised that Tommy was now looking at her, along with everyone else in the room. His head tilted as he studied her, a frown creasing his forehead. "Who are you?"

Her stomach lurched painfully as she stared into those confused, brown eyes. She couldn't speak, couldn't _think_. She wasn't even aware that she was stepping back until she felt Diggle's hand on her back, placing enough pressure to halt her movements.

"Wait, you don't know her?" Oliver asked, his eyes narrowing at his brother, and then at her. Oh, he was suspicious now. Was he realising that he'd been right about her from the start?

"Should I?" Tommy asked bluntly.

"I'll go and get the doctor." Walter said, squeezing Felicity's arm gently as he left the room.

"Sweetheart, you can't remember her at all?" Moira asked, stroking his arm soothingly.

Tommy squinted at her, and she could see the cogs turning in his head as he tried to place her. "She does look very familiar."

_Oh crap_, she thought. That was even worse than him not knowing her at all. If he recognised her from work, all the accusations of her being a gold digger would take on a completely new meaning.

Felicity squeezed her eyes shut for a second, trying to ignore the heat from Oliver's stare, and drown out the white noise that filled her head. What should she do? What _could_ she do other than tell the truth?

"Maybe it's amnesia?" Thea said, looking hopeful.

Amnesia? No, that was going too far. There was no way Felicity could let them think that something was seriously wrong with Tommy when he appeared to be perfectly fine.

Clenching her hands into fists at her sides, she summoned the courage to speak up. "I'm sorry, I have to you tell you all something that is really important."

They all turned to face her, every one of them, and she had to speak before she lost her nerve. "I… I was never-"

"Pregnant?" Moira said, a sympathetic smile appearing. "We know, dear."

Before she could protest, the Queen's specialist doctor arrived with Walter following closely behind. After ordering everyone out so that he could run some tests, Felicity went in search of a coffee machine. She desperately needed the caffeine boost right now, despite the fact that she was already a bag of nerves.

She'd just removed the cup from the machine when a voice from behind startled her. Hot coffee sloshed over the side of the cup and onto her hand.

"Dammit!"

"You're jumpy." Oliver said, taking her hand to inspect the damage.

She yanked her hand back and glared up at him. "That bell I mentioned earlier is starting to sound really appealing right now."

His stoic expression didn't change. In fact, he looked a little angry.

"What is it?"

"How can he not remember you?" he asked, and Felicity felt the dread seep in.

She shrugged her shoulders. "I guess I'm not very memorable."

"I'd remember you."

She blinked in surprise. She'd been expecting an attack, not… well not _that_. What was she supposed to say to that? "Oliver, I-"

"There you are." Moira said, walking over to them. She was always so graceful and poised. "Felicity, how are you doing dear? This can't be easy for you."

_I am the worst,_ she thought_._ "I'm fine, Moira, thank you. Actually, I need some air, if you'll excuse me for just a minute."

Moira smiled and patted her arm. "Of course."

Felicity returned the smile and edged past her, ignoring Oliver completely. She couldn't deal with all this and him right now. It was all too much. She had to figure out a way to tell them the truth without hurting them.

But she was kidding herself. Hurting them was inevitable. Especially Thea. _Oh, Thea_. She'd come to love her the most. Thea was amazing. She was so much fun and they'd grown close in the time she'd known her. It was going to hurt to have to say goodbye to all of that.

Outside the hospital, she leaned against the wall and sank down to the ground, hugging her knees tightly to her chest. She hadn't set out to do any of this, but now that it was almost over, she found that she didn't want to let it go. She didn't want to go back to a life of dinner for one, and watching TV just for some company.

"Felicity?" A shadow fell over her and she looked up to see Diggle standing there.

"I just needed some air."

"You shouldn't be out here alone at this time of night. Are you okay?"

She snorted and threw her hands up. "Why does everyone keep asking me that? I'm not the one in a hospital bed. I don't deserve anyone's concern right now."

Diggle frowned and shoved his hands into his pockets, adopting the stance that she'd quickly come to realise was his 'don't give me any crap' stance.

"Sorry. I'm just… it's a little much. I mean, they're all in there thinking Tommy has some kind of amnesia because he can't remember me. He can't remember me, Digg, because he doesn't _know_ me!"

To her surprise, Diggle sat down on the cold concrete next to her and leaned his arms across his knees. "This is going to be okay, Felicity."

She picked at a thread in her jacket, avoiding his gaze. "Even if I believed you, I don't see _how_ it could ever be okay. Oliver's going to hate me." Her eyes widened slightly as she realised what she'd said. The last thing she needed was for Diggle to realise she had feelings for Oliver. "And Moira and Walter, they've both been so kind to me. And Thea… she's going to hate me most of all."

"I've known the Queens a long time. They're not as bad as you think."

"Oh no! That's not what I meant. I mean… they would have _every_ reason in the world to hate me. Why wouldn't they? I already do."

Diggle let out a loud sigh. "Alright, that's enough."

"What?"

"Enough with the pity, Felicity. You never set out to hurt anyone, this happened because you saved a man's life. You're a strong, brilliant, young woman. They all see that, that's what they've come to love about you." He waited a beat until she looked at him, and then smiled softly. "Including me."

"Oh, Digg." Tears gathered in her eyes, as a swirl of emotion swept through her. Her voice dropped to a whisper. "I don't want to lose them."

Diggle wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her in for a hug. Leaning against him, Felicity felt some of the tension drain out of her. "Digg?"

"Yeah?"

"Will you at least still talk to me when this is all over?"

He squeezed her gently. "You can count on it."

* * *

"Lacunar amnesia is a condition in which memory loss is localised and patchy."

Oliver pinched the bridge of his nose as he listened to the doctor. He'd been surprised, upon returning to Tommy's room, to see that everyone was there except Diggle and Felicity. Though he told himself it wasn't necessary, he couldn't help but be concerned. She'd seemed so scared when he'd talked to her in the corridor. Was she now contemplating a life with a man that could no longer remember her? Was she rethinking her decision to marry him? Selfishly, he kind of hoped so.

Oliver hated himself for that thought, but after everything that had happened earlier, he couldn't go on denying the truth. He had real feelings for Felicity, and after their almost kiss, he knew they weren't going to go away simply because she was marrying his brother.

"It's usually limited to isolated events."

Shaking his head, Oliver tore himself out of his thoughts to focus on what the doctor was saying. "So… selective amnesia?"

Doctor Rubin threw him an impatient glance just as Felicity stumbled through the door. She looked like she'd been crying. He wanted to ask if she was okay, but he held back, because her gaze went straight to Tommy.

"Here she is," Moira smiled. "Tommy, do you recognise her?"

Tommy looked closely at her. "I don't know, she looks familiar but…"

"I think it's coming back," Thea said, clapping her hands together.

"What's coming back?" Tommy asked, confused. "Somebody tell me, please."

Moira stroked a hand through his hair. "Tommy, you're engaged."

Tommy frowned at that. "To who?"

"Felicity."

"Who's Felicity?"

"You really don't remember, do you?" Thea said sadly.

Something bubbled up inside Oliver when Tommy's eyes locked hard onto Felicity. She tried to hide it, but Oliver saw the way she shifted, as if she were a little uncomfortable with all the scrutiny. Everyone in the room was staring at her, and he just wanted to protect her from it, somehow.

A nurse entered the room, carrying a tray of food. "Got some jello for you today, Mr Merlyn."

Tommy dragged his eyes slowly away from Felicity to look at his mother. "Do I like jello?"

She chuckled. "You love it, sweetheart."

"Okay," the doctor said, gesturing for everyone to leave the room. "I think Tommy's had enough excitement for one day. Let's give him some time to rest."

Walter spoke up for the first time since entering the room. Placing his hand on his wife's back, he directed her to the door. "Quite right, let's all go home."

Oliver held back, watching as Thea and Felicity left side by side, arms linked together. He itched to go after her, to pick up where they'd left off in the Foundry. But that could never happen again. He'd been foolish to let it get to that stage in the first place.

"Oliver?"

He turned back to Tommy, hope springing in his chest that maybe he had forgotten their argument too. "Yeah?"

"We should probably talk." Ah, he did remember. "But not now."

Oliver nodded. "Okay. Later."

The cold air hit him hard when he stepped outside, and he took a moment to draw in a deep, refreshing breath. His chest was on fire, and the pain in his shoulder was getting worse. He needed more pain meds. Where the hell was Diggle, anyway?

"Oliver?" He squeezed his eyes shut even tighter when he heard her voice. He needed some space from her for a while, to think things through. "Are you okay?"

"What are you still doing here, Felicity?" His tone came out harsher than he'd intended, but he didn't know how to talk to her now. Not only because she was his brother's fiancée, but also because she knew his secret, and he had no idea what to do about that.

"Diggle drove us here, remember? How are you feeling?"

_You mean besides the fact that I like you and I want you?_ He thought bitterly. "A lot better than my brother, apparently."

She waited, saying nothing until he opened his eyes and glanced down at her. "Oliver, you were shot. You need to rest too, you know."

"Thanks for the advice."

Her sympathetic expression faded into one of annoyance. "I watched you almost bleed to death earlier, Oliver, and I have never been so scared in my life. The least you can do is take some time to rest. Is that too much to ask?"

Softening her voice, she stepped forward a little. "I just… I don't want to see you get hurt. I mean even more than you already have."

As the car pulled up in front of them, Diggle at the wheel, Oliver opened the door for her to get in first. "I'm used to getting hurt, Felicity. Doing what I do, sometimes it's the only way. Pain is a constant reminder that I'm at least still alive."

Just before she got in, she rested a hand over his on top of the door. Why did she have to look at him like that? Didn't she know that she was making it impossible for him to stay away from her?

Her lips, lips that he could not stop staring at, curved into an encouraging smile. "Then maybe it's time to find another way."

* * *

The ride to her apartment was quiet, and Oliver seemed lost in his own little world. As the car pulled up outside her building, she let out a tired sigh. As scared as she was of the truth coming out tomorrow, a small part of her was almost relieved that it would finally be over. It would hurt, but it would be over. Keeping a secret this big for this long was exhausting.

Oliver turned to look at her, but his eyes didn't meet hers. He kept his gaze pinned on the window behind her.

"I wanted to thank you, Oliver."

That seemed to surprise him, if the raised eyebrows were any indication. "What for?"

"You've been really great this past week."

He scoffed. "Oh you mean when I accused you of lying to everyone, or of sleeping with Cooper?"

"Well-"

"Or when I thought you were pregnant and I announced it to all of your friends."

Why was he being so hard on himself? She'd already forgiven him for all of that. She patted his hand where it rested on top of his leg. "You've had a really busy week."

He shook his head and huffed out a small laugh. "Felicity…"

Swallowing past the sudden lump in her throat, Felicity reached for the door handle. "Starting tomorrow, things are probably going to be… different."

He nodded, his face solemn.

"But I want you to know that you've become…" she trailed off at the sad look in his eyes. This was harder than she'd thought. "You've become a really good friend, Oliver."

"Friend." He repeated the word, as if it were foreign to him. She'd give anything to know what was going on in his head right at that moment.

As he stared at his hands in his lap, Felicity opened the door and got out of the car, her chest constricting with each movement she made. She felt as if this was goodbye. And the thought of never seeing him again hurt so much more than she realised it could.

"Felicity."

The softness of his tone had her turning back to face him. "Yeah?"

"I am sorry for what I said about you and Tommy." Pain flashed across his face as he twisted to face her fully. "For what it's worth, I think you'll make… a really great couple."

_Please, Oliver… don't. _He reached out to touch her hand, the lightest of touches that still somehow managed to send a tingle up her arm.

"I'm really glad that you won't be alone anymore. I want you to be happy."

Pursing her lips, Felicity squeezed his fingers once before letting go. "Goodbye, Oliver."

"Bye, Felicity."

Closing the door, she turned and headed towards her apartment. She rushed up the stairs, ignoring Cooper as he appeared at the top with a woman from the third floor in tow. She didn't have the strength to deal with him right now. Once inside, she collapsed to the floor, tears streaming down her face as her hands clutched at her chest.

How could something she'd never had, hurt so much to lose?

* * *

When Diggle entered Tommy's hospital room early the next morning, he was surprised to find him alone. He'd spent the remainder of last night back at the Foundry with Oliver. Someone had to make sure that he stayed in, since going out with that shoulder was not an option.

"What are you doing here, Digg?" Tommy asked, his eyes zeroing in on him as he draped his coat over the back of a nearby chair.

Diggle sighed as he sat down next to the bed. "So you're still mad at me too."

Tommy stared at him for a moment, an unreadable expression on his face. "You lied to me. Both of you lied to me. The two people I thought I could trust the most…"

He shook his head, one hand coming up to touch the bandage still wrapped around it. "But no, I'm not mad. Not anymore. I don't understand it, and I don't think I ever will, but I'm choosing to let the anger go."

Diggle frowned. "That's… surprising. Last time I saw you, you were cursing at me for letting this happen."

Toying with the heart monitor clip on his finger, Tommy avoided his gaze. "Yeah well, I might've been a little hard on you. What Oliver's doing is his choice. It's his life. If he wants to get himself killed, who am I to stand in the way?"

"It's not about that and you know it. He's doing the best he can, Tommy. He was stranded on an island for a long time. He fought _every day_ for his life. You don't understand what effect that can have on a person."

"But you do." It wasn't a question, it was… an understanding. He was finally getting the point.

"Yeah, it's not easy. He'll get through it, but he's going to need you and everyone he loves in order to do that."

Tommy nodded thoughtfully. "I still can't quite believe that my own brother is a vigilante. It just seems so ridiculous."

Diggle leaned back in his chair and laughed, thankful that the tension between them had dissipated. "Like I said, he's doing the best that he can. We need to give him time to adjust back to living life here, where there isn't someone chasing him every day. But how about you?"

"How about me, what?"

"Felicity Smoak?"

Tommy let out a tired sigh. "I don't know, Digg. I don't remember asking her to marry me. I've tried, but I just… don't."

Diggle pursed his lips. For a split second, he found himself rethinking his decision to talk to Tommy about this. He wasn't back to his usual sassy self yet. But after seeing the pain in Felicity's eyes as she realised she was about to lose everything she'd come to love, he couldn't stay quiet. That woman had touched something deep inside of him, and he knew in his heart that she wasn't capable of doing anything malicious.

It was a freak accident that brought her into their lives, but Diggle was grateful for it. Felicity Smoak was an extraordinary young woman, and he wasn't blind, he could see how much Thea had bonded with her. How much Moira had grown to love her, and how even Oliver seemed different around her. She had given the Queens hope, and in return, they'd given her a family. He didn't think it was fair that she should have to lose all that because of one little white lie.

Okay, it was more than a little white lie, but she wasn't doing it for personal gain or to cause anyone pain. She was just… lonely.

"Tommy, you're an ass."

Tommy blinked in surprise. "Excuse me?"

"I have been your bodyguard, your _friend_ for years. I have come to think of both you and Oliver as my brothers. Your family is _my_ family. But Tommy… you're an ass."

He almost laughed at the confusion written all over the younger man's face.

"Is there a point to this, Digg?"

"Felicity. Listen, Tommy, there's something you need to know about her."

He floundered a little when Tommy's eyebrows rose in question. "Uh, well… she's uh, she's not only your fiancée, she's your guardian angel as well."

"What do you mean?"

"She saved your life, man. She pushed you out of the way of that car. Got some stitches in her arm to show for it."

Tommy frowned, but Diggle could see a hint of something else in his expression. He was impressed. "Wow."

"Yeah. Look, she's coming in to see you today, and I want you do something for me." Diggle shook his head. "No, not for me. I want you to do something for yourself."

He leaned forward in his chair, resting his elbows on his knees. "I want you to look deeply into her eyes, and listen with the heart of a man who's just been given a second chance at life. Because I won't lie, it got pretty scary there for a while. We all thought… never mind. My point is, just listen."

Tommy gave him a half smile. "I don't feel like I know her, Digg."

"That's okay, you will if you give yourself the chance. But if, after two minutes, you don't start to feel something… well, tell her that you want to break up, and you can go back to being an ass."

Tommy glared at him for that, but Diggle could see he was really thinking about his words.

"But Tommy, if, in the two minutes you see what the rest of us only took seconds to see, you'll propose to her again, and marry her before she can come to her senses."

Diggle could tell that his words were sinking in; Tommy didn't even react to his jibe. "Just… think about it, okay?"

"Okay."

As Diggle stood up to leave, Tommy shook his head. "She must be pretty special huh?"

"Felicity?" Diggle hooked his coat over his arm and turned back to look at him. "Yeah, she's special. Remember what I said, man. Just listen."

* * *

Felicity tiptoed into Tommy's room later that morning, grateful that he seemed to be sleeping. She wasn't sure how to deal with him if Diggle had done what he'd promised to do. There were bound to be many Queens out for her blood by now. All she had to do was place the box of his personal belongings that the nurse had given her down, and leave.

She'd almost made it back to the door when she heard his voice.

"Felicity?"

She paused for a second, slightly confused that he didn't sound angry. Slowly, she turned around, plastering a smile on her face. "Hi."

He smiled that same smile she had adored for so long, the one that always made her stomach flip. Diggle had obviously failed to tell him the truth. _He's so fired_, she thought. "I was just bringing you your things."

Tommy glanced at the box, a nostalgic expression appearing. "Thank you. How are you?"

"Shouldn't I be asking you that question?"

Tommy tilted his head. He seemed to be struggling for something to say to her. "Would you like a sandwich?"

She almost chuckled at the earnest look on his face. "No, no thanks. I'm fine. Oh, but can I get you anything?"

"Well, I could murder a cheeseburger right now. But that's probably not allowed."

"Quarter pounder deluxe with extra pickles?" she asked with a little too much enthusiasm. But honestly, the man made her nervous. She'd had such a huge crush on him for the longest time, and it was a little embarrassing now that she was face to face with him.

"Yes!" he replied, grinning. "Big Belly Burger does the best."

"It's my favourite too."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

An awkward silence fell after that, with neither of them knowing what to say to fill it. Tommy gestured towards a chair at the side of his bed.

"Please, sit down."

Tucking her purse in close to her stomach, she sat, waiting for him to initiate any kind of conversation. But he just… stared. He was studying her, as if he were looking for something.

It was a little unnerving, so she blurted the first thing that popped into her head. "Pictures! I've uh… your mom showed me some photos of when you were a child."

"Oh God…" he groaned. "I swear, whatever year it was, I was way cooler than I looked."

She let out a surprised chuckle. "It's okay, Oliver was in most of them too. But for what it's worth, I thought you were very cute."

Even the way he shrugged his shoulders was cute. "It's the cheekbones."

Okay, she needed to stay on topic here, because those cheekbones were seriously distracting. "So uh, I saw the photo with the squirrels."

"Ah, the squirrels. They never call, never write."

This time she couldn't stop the laughter from erupting. There was just something about him that put her at ease. "What happened to them?"

Tommy leaned his head back onto his pillow and raised his eyes to the ceiling. "There's not a whole lot to tell really. It was a sunny afternoon at the Queen mansion. Oliver and I were exploring the length of the grounds; we were only nine so it was a first for us to be unaccompanied."

He lowered his gaze to hers and smiled. "I found three tiny little squirrels, just lying there on the ground. They were just babies, so I picked them up and climbed the tree to put them back. That's really all there was to it. It wasn't all that heroic."

Felicity smiled. "It was to those baby squirrels."

A faint red hue worked its way up Tommy's face. He couldn't be blushing, could he? No, a man like Tommy Merlyn didn't blush in the presence of a woman. At least not one like Felicity, anyway. She'd seen how confident he could be when he was interested in someone.

"Maybe," he agreed. "It's no jumping in front of a moving car though. That was heroic."

His warm, brown eyes landed on her and she had to fight the urge to fidget beneath his penetrating gaze. "Uh… well, I couldn't let you get hit now could I?

His smile faded as his eyes narrowed. "Felicity… that's a nice name."

"Thank you, I quite like it too."

Slowly, almost hesitantly, Tommy reached out and covered her hand with his. "I feel like I know you. I feel as if… you remind me of someone. It's probably _you_."

"Listen, Tommy I-"

"I've had a rough year; things have happened that I've had no control over. I've barely spoken to my family; I threw myself into my work. That was never me, I was never that guy. I love my family."

She opened her mouth to speak, but Tommy seemed to be lost in his own thoughts.

"I've done, and said, some things that I'm not proud of. But now, I feel like this was a wake-up call. I've been given a second chance." He glanced back at her. "And it's all because of you, Felicity. You saved my life. You're the reason that I have this second chance."

"Oh well, I-"

"I have a feeling that you saved me in more ways than just diving in front of a car for me. You're… special."

Felicity's heart thumped wildly in her chest. All she'd ever wanted was for him to notice her, and now that he had, it was under the worst possible circumstances. "Tommy, what are you saying?"

He leaned forward, trapping her hand between both of his. "I'm saying that, even though I don't remember you right now, I feel something. A connection. It took a coma to wake me up."

A feeling of dread washed over her.

"I have the rest of my life to get to know you again. To love you again. So please-"

"Tommy, don't-"

"Felicity Smoak, will you marry me?"

_**To Be Continued...**_


	8. Chapter 8

_**A/N: So it's been a while since I updated this story, and I apologise profusely for that. I just want to say thanks to everyone who has stuck with me this far, we are not too far from the end now so hang in there. Here's the next chapter, enjoy :D**_

_**Previously on While You Were Sleeping: **Felicity's heart thumped furiously. All she'd ever wanted was for him to notice her, and now that he had, it was under the worst possible circumstances. "Tommy, what are you saying?"_

_He leaned forward, trapping her hand between both of his. "I'm saying that, even though I don't remember you right now, I feel something. A connection. It took a coma to wake me up."_

_A feeling of dread washed over her. _

_"I have the rest of my life to get to know you again. To love you again. So please-"_

_"Tommy, don't-"_

_"Felicity Smoak, will you marry me?"_

_**Chapter Eight**_

"Good morning, Mr Queen." Wanda, the nurse in charge on Tommy's unit, greeted him with a warm smile as he approached.

Leaning his elbows on the counter, Oliver nodded politely. "Hi. Is Tommy ready for visitors yet? I know it's early."

"For you, Mr Queen, it's never too early."

Oliver resisted the urge to roll his eyes as she assessed him. She wasn't exactly subtle, and although he would've loved the attention in his younger years, it no longer held any appeal. No, nowadays whenever he thought of the opposite sex, only one person came to mind. Her smile and the sparkle in her eyes when her curiosity peaked. The way she was able to find joy in the simplest things, and her unflinching ability to tell him exactly what she thought of him.

He wasn't sure when, or even how, Felicity had gotten into his system so badly. Two days ago, she'd told him that maybe he needed to find another way of doing things so that he wouldn't get so hurt. And it had stayed in his mind ever since. That maybe one day, he'd be the one ending up in a body bag.

Maybe he did need to change the way he went about things.

"Mr Queen?"

He snapped back to attention to find the young nurse looking at him expectantly. "Mm?"

Wanda chuckled as she shook her head. "I said you're free to visit your brother whenever you want. Visiting hours are a little different in the intensive care unit."

Murmuring a quick thank you, Oliver pushed away from the counter and made his way down the hall to Tommy's room. He wasn't looking forward to this conversation, but he knew that it had to happen. If they were going to have any kind of relationship in the future, he had to try.

Tommy was still sleeping when he arrived, making him hesitate in the doorway. Should he wake him? No, he needed his rest. But after avoiding him all day yesterday, he couldn't put this off any longer.

"It's creepy to stare at people lying in hospital beds, Ollie."

Oliver smiled and moved into the room, taking a seat next to the bed. "So is pretending to be asleep when someone walks in."

Tommy cracked an eye open. "I wasn't pretending. Besides, you're not as ninja quiet as you like to think. I could hear you coming a mile away."

Oliver snorted as he crossed his arms. "Well I forgot to put my ninja shoes on this morning."

Tommy chuckled, opening his eyes fully before a frown drew his brows together. "You look like crap, buddy."

"Um… thanks?"

"No, I mean it. Did something happen?"

Oliver winced inwardly as his mind replayed the events that led to his injury. "Occupational hazard. Nothing I can't handle."

His brother didn't look convinced. "Then how come you look like you're the one who should be lying here instead of me?"

"Tommy, it's nothing." Which was only half-true. He barely felt any pain now, but his shoulder ached something fierce, and he was pretty sure he'd torn one of his stitches the night before.

Tommy narrowed his eyes for a second, and then laid his head back down on his pillow. "You know what? Fine. If you don't want to tell me, I can't force you. Just promise me that you're at least being careful out there."

"Tommy, you really don't need to worry about me. Digg's got my back."

"Look, Oliver, I said some things that I'm not proud of. When I found out what you were doing, I was angry."

A wave of guilt swept through Oliver. "Tommy-"

"No, just listen. I said some awful things, and I'm… well I'm sorry."

Oliver shook his head. "No, you have nothing to apologise for."

Tommy grimaced. "Yeah, I really do. I was angry for so many reasons; I never stopped to think about what you've been through. What must've happened to you out there on that island to turn you into… _him_. I don't know, I guess I just couldn't believe that you could keep something that big from me. I thought we were best friends as well as brothers."

"We are," Oliver replied, his voice cracking a little. "Tommy you have always been my best friend. I know that you want me to open up about my time there, but… I just can't. Not yet. Maybe not ever. It's not something I want to put in your head. Because once you know, you'll see me differently."

Tommy frowned at him. "You really believe that?"

As much as he wanted to believe otherwise, Oliver knew that if Tommy knew even a fraction of what happened to him, he would see him as… damaged. "It's hard for me to talk about. But I'm sorry that I lied to you, Tommy."

Tommy nodded, drawing in a deep breath. "Were you ever going to tell me?"

Oliver hesitated for a moment, he didn't want to hurt his feelings, but he didn't want to lie anymore either.

"No," he replied, continuing before Tommy could protest. "But not because I didn't want to or because I don't trust you. What I'm doing, it's dangerous. And anyone who is even in my orbit can get hurt. I didn't want that to happen to you, I don't want that part of my life to touch you or Mom or… _Thea_."

"But Digg's okay?"

"He's an ex-soldier, he knows how to handle himself."

Tommy stayed quiet for a few minutes, rubbing his forehead just where his bandage lay as if it was irritating him. "Well, I'm glad that you're not completely alone in this crusade. I'd be lying if I said that I was okay with it. But you've gotta do this, I understand that now."

Oliver swallowed tightly. "Thanks, Tommy. I appreciate that."

He shrugged. "What are brothers for? So… we're okay?"

"Yeah, we're okay." Oliver smiled for the first time since entering the room. "But I'm curious, why the sudden change of heart? Not that I'm complaining but…"

"Felicity," Tommy replied, his breathy tone catching Oliver off guard. "If it hadn't been for her, I probably would've died that day. But because of her, I get another chance to make things right. I shouldn't have pushed everyone away. I was just so angry and confused. But now… I get a do-over, and not many people get those so I'm not going to waste it."

Oliver nodded thoughtfully, picturing Felicity in his mind. "That's good to hear."

"She's amazing though, right? I mean, she has to be. Why else would I ask her to marry me?"

Oliver cleared his throat. "Yeah, she's nice. I like her."

But Tommy wasn't even listening to him, he was off in his own world. "I wish I could remember more about her. Like what kind of things she's into, how she takes her coffee. You know, the little things. I don't even know if she likes ice cream."

"Mint chocolate chip," Oliver murmured to himself.

Tommy shook his head and focused his attention back on Oliver. "Doesn't matter, you know why? I have the rest of my life to figure all that out. To get to know her again."

Oliver felt the familiar twinge in his chest at the thought of their upcoming nuptials. Felicity was never going to be his, he had to accept that and move on. Although he'd be lying if he said that he didn't wish he'd met her before Tommy. Maybe things would've been a lot different. Maybe he wouldn't be so… lost.

Then again, maybe he would've screwed it up, like everything else in his past.

"You like her?" Tommy asked, jolting Oliver out of his thoughts.

"Uh… well yeah she's okay, I guess."

"Good, because there's something I wanted to ask you."

_Oh no, please no._

"Will you be my best man?"

He looked so hopeful that Oliver didn't have the heart to tell him that he'd rather go back to the island than witness his wedding to Felicity. "I thought you guys hadn't set a date yet."

If Tommy noticed his deflection, he didn't let on. "We decided to get married this weekend."

That soon? "What uh… aren't you forgetting something? You've only just woken up from a coma."

Tommy chuckled. "The doctor said that I'm doing well, and he sees no reason why I can't be released in time for the weekend."

Oliver frowned. "And Felicity's okay with that? I thought she'd want time to plan it all or something."

"After everything that's happened recently, why wait? It's going to be at the mansion. Felicity doesn't want the media to storm in and ruin it. She just wants it to be a small, intimate gathering. Mom already said she'd take care of everything."

Somehow, Oliver knew that would make Felicity uncomfortable. His mother was a force to be reckoned with, and he knew that Felicity didn't like a lot of attention on herself, which was odd considering who she was marrying.

But could he do this? Could he stand up with his brother and watch him marry the woman who had quickly taken a rather large place in his heart? Would he be able to watch her walk down the aisle, but not towards him?

_I have to, _he thought_, she's not mine._

"So… will you be my best man? There's really no one else for the job, Ollie," Tommy said with a wink.

With a smile that felt as if it might actually split his face, Oliver nodded. "Sure, Tommy. I'll be your best man."

Tommy reached over and shook his hand, a beaming smile on his face. "I knew I could count on you, brother."

Oliver shifted uncomfortably in his seat, eager to change the subject to something much safer. He honestly didn't know how much more he could take of hearing about Felicity, but one thing was clear. He had to forget about her, for good.

"So… how are things going at the company?"

* * *

Later that evening, Felicity sat alone in the dark Foundry. She'd gone there in the hope that she would be able to quiet her thoughts, and knowing that Oliver was having dinner with his family meant she could be alone. Of course, she would've been alone at her apartment too, but at least here, she had a distraction.

After finishing a few more upgrades on the system she'd improved a few days ago, she began working on installing a new server. One that could deliver a lot more power. She told herself that she was doing it to help Oliver. But deep down she knew that she was using that as an excuse to avoid thinking about the latest trouble she'd gotten herself into.

Why on earth had she accepted Tommy's proposal? It was insane. Beyond insane, actually. She was an idiot to think that this could have any kind of a happy ending. But when he'd asked her, his expression so kind and hopeful, her mind had stopped working. All the reasons why it was such a bad idea had completely disappeared, and for once in her life, she'd reacted impulsively.

But now that a day or so had passed, all the little niggling doubts and fears had worked their way to the surface. So much so that all she felt was a constant gnawing in the pit of her stomach and it was starting to make her feel nauseous.

"Ohh, how am I going to get out of this one?" she asked herself.

The computer pinging was her only answer, and as she reached forward to grab the mouse, the door above her slammed shut. Without thinking, she grabbed her keyboard and jumped out of her chair, ready to face the thundering feet coming down the metal stairs.

She quickly recognised the figure reaching for the light switch. "Oliver?"

Surprised to see her, Oliver blinked as he took in her stance. "Felicity, what are you doing here?"

"I uh… well-"

He walked towards her, his mouth tilting up slightly when he saw what she was holding. "How much damage did you think you were going to do with that?"

Pursing her lips, she lowered the keyboard. "It was the closest thing to hand."

He placed his motorcycle helmet down on a table next to him and then leaned against it. "Well, since only Digg and I have the code to this place, I think you're safe. You can put it down now."

She frowned at the way he was leaning to one side. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

Placing the keyboard down, she moved towards him, her hand reaching out for the zip of his brown, leather jacket. "Did you tear your stitches?"

He sidestepped her easily and walked over to the computer station. "I said I'm fine, Felicity, really."

Closing the hand that was still in mid-air, Felicity let it drop to her side and turned to face him.

"Why are you here?" he asked again.

She rubbed her hands together nervously, sensing that he wasn't very happy to see her in his base of operations. "Um, I wanted to do a little more work on your system. I'm sorry, I should've asked, I just…"

"You just what?"

She inhaled deeply, raising her eyes to the ceiling as she shook her head. "I just needed a place to go where your mother couldn't find me. She's experiencing a little wedding fever right now, you know, planning the whole thing out."

Oliver shifted from one foot to the other. "And you're not?"

"Not really. I think your mother and sister have that covered enough for everyone."

Scraping a hand down his face, he let himself drop into her chair, barely hiding the wince as it jolted his torso. "Yeah, they can be a little intense sometimes. I've never seen Thea this excited. She's always wanted a sister; I guess she's finally getting her wish."

Felicity swallowed hard, pushing away the little stab of guilt. "Growing up alone is hard. I always wanted siblings, but… it never happened. Thea's lucky she has you and Tommy."

"I'm sure she wouldn't agree," he said, wincing again as he stood up.

"Okay, that's it, sit down."

His eyebrows rose at her bossy tone as she headed over to the medical supplies. "I know that you want to play the macho "I'm fine" act, but you're not fooling anyone. Sit down, I want to at least change that dressing and see if it's bleeding."

"Felicity-"

"I mean it, Oliver. That is not a flesh wound; you were seriously hurt. How long do you think you can keep going if you don't take care of yourself?"

Her challenge left him speechless, and as she walked back over to him, she could see in his eyes that he wasn't happy about it. _Well, tough,_ she thought. He had to learn that he couldn't take these kinds of risks and expect everything to be okay all the time.

He was still standing by the time she reached him, his stoic expression remaining as she placed her hand on his arm. "Please, Oliver. Just let me look."

"Why do you even care, Felicity?" he asked, his voice so quiet she had to strain to hear him.

The way he was staring down at her made her shiver; his eyes were so intense and dark. She could easily imagine how criminals might find him intimidating. "Because that's who I am."

"That's right. You're the kind of girl who pushes people out of the path of oncoming traffic." With a deep sigh, Oliver relented, slowly sinking back down into the chair. As he removed his jacket and then his shirt, she could see the blood seeping through onto his white vest.

"Sure, you're totally fine," she mumbled, ripping a packet of gauze open.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Let's just get this over with."

She kept her reply to herself and gently moved his vest out of the way. Slowly peeling the bandage away, she wasn't surprised to see that he'd torn two of his stitches. "Damn it. Where's Digg when you need him?"

She had no idea how to even begin suturing wounds, so for now, a clean, fresh dressing would have to do. Leaning in closely, she began cleaning the blood away, trying her best to ignore how amazing he smelled. She could feel his eyes on her, burning into her skin, but he stayed silent as she worked.

"There," she said, gently tracing the edges of the dressing. "That should hold for now. But you should get Diggle to look at it."

"I can do it myself," he grunted.

"Right, because you don't need anyone to take care of you."

His eyes met hers, and she knew that he was trying to intimidate her, but she had news for him. It wasn't working.

"I've survived by myself for a long time, Felicity."

"Why do you have to be so stubborn?"

"Why do you have to be so bossy?" he countered, pulling his shirt back on. "I didn't ask for your help!"

Her irritation rose at his tone. What the hell was his problem? "Because clearly you need to hear it! I thought you were going to stay in and rest last night."

"I did," he replied through gritted teeth as he stood up.

She scoffed. "Why don't I believe that? Oh yeah, because you're currently bleeding!"

He stepped closer, towering over her, but she held her ground. "It's nothing. I've had worse."

"You almost died, you idiot!" she yelled, getting right into his face.

Suddenly his hands shot out, grasping her roughly by the upper arms. Her heart beat wildly in her chest as he pulled her closer, his nose almost touching hers, their lips a hair's breadth apart.

"I don't need you to take care of me, Felicity," he growled. "If you really want to look after someone so badly, go to your fiancé."

Her eyes widened as she yanked herself out of his grasp. She had no right to be angry, but his words cut deeper than she wanted to admit. "I… I'm sorry. You're right; this is all none of my business."

When he saw her rubbing her arms where he'd grabbed her, he lunged forward, his expression softening in an instant. "No, I'm sorry, Felicity. That wasn't fair of me."

"No, it wasn't. But that doesn't mean you're wrong either."

"Did I…?" he swallowed thickly. "Did I hurt you?"

She shook her head. "No, I'm fine."

Licking his lips, his fingers grazed over her arms. "Are you sure?"

He looked so horrified that he might've hurt her. "I'm sure."

She was surprised when he dropped his forehead to hers, eyes closed and breathing fast. "I never want you to be afraid of me. Never."

"I'm not," she whispered, one hand coming up to cradle his face. "I know you'd never hurt me."

He stayed there for a few moments, dragging deep breaths of air into his lungs, and Felicity wondered what had happened to him. What had happened to make him that scared of his own power?

_He has killed people, duh._ Well, that might be true, but she doubted that he had enjoyed any second of it. Whatever he'd had to do to survive on that island, he'd had no choice. But she knew in her bones that he could never hurt her or any innocent person.

"Oliver, what is it?"

Her soft voice lulled him out of his thoughts and he raised his head, his eyes locking onto hers. She brought her other hand up so that she was cupping his face between both of them. "Talk to me, please."

"How do you do it?" he whispered, his gaze unblinking as he stared into her eyes. "How is it that you can see right through me?"

"I… I don't know how to answer that."

"I had it all worked out, coming home, back to this city. I had a plan. This city needs someone to fight for it, to protect people in ways that the police can't. After everything I've done in my past, this is the only way that I can move forward. My mission… it has to come first. Above everything else."

"That sounds like a very lonely way to live." And she knew all about loneliness. It sucked.

As she licked her bottom lip, Oliver's eyes moved slowly down her face, lingering on her mouth. The hand that was cupping her shoulder gently stroked down her arm, leaving tingles in its wake. She couldn't think with him this close, and there were a million reasons why she should move away. But she couldn't. She was trapped in his orbit, unable to break free.

"Oliver…"

With a heavy sigh, he squeezed his eyes shut and once again leaned his forehead against hers, as if summoning the strength for something. Then, abruptly, he released her and took a step back, grabbing his jacket as he headed towards the stairs.

Her chest constricted at the thought of him leaving her after the moment they'd just shared. Something was brewing between the two of them, something that she couldn't define, and she could no longer go on telling herself that it was just because they'd been spending a lot of time together lately. "Where are you going?"

He paused on the third step up, turning slightly to look at her. "I need to go do something."

"You're not ready to go back out there yet," she admonished.

"Don't worry, no crime fighting for tonight. Goodnight, Felicity."

Wringing her hands together, she stepped forward. "Oliver?"

"Yeah?"

_Just do it, Felicity. If you don't, you'll always regret it._

"Can you give me any reason, why I shouldn't marry your brother?"

Her question shocked him, that much was obvious, but the longer he stayed silent, the faster her heart started to beat. A frown appeared, bringing with it that little crinkle on his forehead that she always longed to smooth away with her touch.

Her heart dropped to her stomach when he shook his head. "I can't."

She rubbed her chest, trying to dispel the sudden ache as she gave what she hoped was a smile. "Right. Goodnight, Oliver."

He nodded once and then continued up the stairs, leaving her, once again, with her own thoughts.

* * *

The following afternoon, Felicity sat at her desk, her eyes staring at her computer screen but seeing nothing. Her mind was determined to torture her, it would seem, because all she could think about was the fact that she would be getting married in three days, and she had feelings for the brother of the man she was due to marry.

She'd spent the morning with Tommy, pleased to see him looking a lot better now that he'd been moved out of the intensive care unit. He'd made her laugh, told her stories of his youth, and asked many questions about her own. He really was a nice guy.

"Felicity?"

She looked up towards the door, surprised to see Alex standing there. "Alex, sorry, what's up?"

She smiled as he flopped into the chair opposite her and threw his feet up on her desk. One of the things she loved about her boss was that he was an easy-going person; she could be herself around him. It also made him easy to talk to and confide in. "I called your name three times, what's on your mind, Smoak?"

"Nothing."

He threw her a look that said he clearly didn't buy that.

"I uh… I actually have something for you."

Alex's brows rose. "Don't tell me you finished that report already."

"Depends, is there a raise in it for me?"

"Nice try. What is it then?"

Taking a deep breath, she handed him a pristine white envelope. "Here."

He whistled as he read the front of it. "Fancy. Wait a second; is this what I think it is?"

Felicity shrugged, waiting for him to open it before she spoke.

"Felicity…" Alex gaped at the card he was now holding. "This is a wedding invitation."

"Mm-hmm."

Lowering his feet to the ground, he leaned forward across her desk. "This is _your_ wedding invitation."

"Well now that we've established that you can read, do you think you could give me an answer?"

"But, this is…" he stuttered, trying to find the right words. "This says the wedding is on Saturday."

She nodded, returning her attention to her computer screen. If he was going to take his time getting used to the idea, she might as well get some work done in the meantime. "Believe me; I am well aware of that. Moira Queen takes no prisoners when it comes to organising events. Even small ones at her home."

Alex dropped the invitation on the desk and rubbed at his forehead. "Felicity, what are you doing?"

"What do you mean?"

Alex threw his hands up. "I mean that this is insane. You do realise that, right?"

"Yes, Alex, I'm insane," she deadpanned. "Every day I come here and sit in an office, I do my work, and I go home to an empty apartment."

"Felicity-"

"Every day, I am reminded of the fact that I have no one. That I am…" her voice dropped to a whisper. "Alone."

She couldn't take the look of sympathy on his face and it annoyed her that she couldn't seem to stop tears forming in her eyes. She didn't need his pity. "So now, a handsome man with a kind heart has asked me to marry him and I've said yes. Okay? Yes, that makes me a raving lunatic."

"The wedding is in three days!" he repeated, as if that would talk some sense into her.

"I know that it's in three days, Alex!" she yelled, her frustration rising as she slapped her palms down on her desk. "But you know what? I even wish it were yesterday. Because that would mean that today I would be on my honeymoon, all of this would be behind me, and I wouldn't have to live like this anymore!"

Alex sat back, a long sigh escaping him as he looked at her with a sad expression. "What happened with Oliver?"

Felicity closed her eyes, hating so much that Alex could read her so easily. He always knew when something was bothering her. She bit her bottom lip, looking up at the ceiling as she shook her head.

"He didn't want me. There are… other things in his life that take priority."

"I just don't want you to jump into something that you'll regret later on."

"I'm not. Trust me, Alex. Tommy's a great guy."

Alex stood up and smoothed his jacket down. "Well, I guess you can put me down as attending then."

Felicity sighed in relief. "Thank you."

* * *

Two days later, Felicity stood in the foyer of the Queen mansion, wide eyed and wondering how it was possible that time was moving so fast. Today was the rehearsal in preparation for tomorrow's ceremony, followed by a family dinner in the evening. So naturally, the place had been transformed into some sort of wonderland, with more twinkling lights than she'd seen in her whole life.

Moira Queen sure did work fast, Felicity thought, with growing trepidation. This was not a woman to be messed with, she valued family above all else. And it killed Felicity that she was lying to her when she'd been nothing but kind. It wasn't right; she had to say something before this went any further. But how?

As the woman in question finished her conversation with one of the decorators and began making her way over, Felicity froze.

"Felicity, dear, are you alright?" Moira asked as she kissed her cheek. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

Felicity shook her head, trying to dislodge the constant barrage of voices screaming at her. Some telling her to do the right thing, some telling her to ignore it and the problem would go away. After all, she wasn't really hurting anyone, right? "I'm fine. It's just… this is all so beautiful. You _really _didn't have to go to all this trouble, Moira."

Moira waved a dismissive hand. "Nonsense, there is nothing I wouldn't do for my son. And for my soon-to-be-daughter-in-law. I'll admit that I was a little disappointed that you two had decided on a less formal setting for your wedding, but it certainly doesn't make the occasion any less special."

Felicity nodded whilst drawing in a deep, steadying breath. It was now or never. "Moira, there's something I need to tell you-"

"Felicity!" Thea came barrelling down the stairs, interrupting her. Before she could so much as blink, Thea had thrown her arms around her, squeezing so hard that Felicity could hardly breathe. "Are you excited? I'm so excited. Tomorrow is going to be so awesome!"

Moira chuckled. "Thea, give her room to breathe, sweetheart."

"Oh, sorry," she replied, stepping back with a sheepish expression. But Felicity could practically feel the energy radiating from her, and Thea's excitement for this sham of a wedding only made Felicity feel worse.

She tried to muster a smile and must've succeeded because Thea returned it as she grabbed her hand and held on tight.

"Did you get your dress sorted?"

"Uh…"

"Oh I bet it's going to be gorgeous!"

"Thea," a voice said from behind Felicity. Her shoulders straightened almost immediately. _Oliver_. "Today's just the rehearsal, not the real thing. I think you can calm down a little."

Thea threw her brother a glare. "Well at least one of us is excited. Honestly, Ollie, anyone would think you didn't want Tommy to be happy. What's your problem lately?"

"Thea," Moira interjected sternly, "this is neither the time nor the place."

Felicity glanced down at the floor, admiring the intricate design of the fancy carpet, feeling out of place. She didn't belong here, that was more evident than ever. But with Oliver standing so close behind her, it made her all too aware of the fact that he would never be interested in her.

But she thought she'd seen… something in him. The intensity in his eyes whenever they'd gotten close, the way he'd looked as if he'd wanted to kiss her. Her mind replayed their last conversation in his lair; taunting her with all the different ways that scenario could've ended. It was torture.

"Where is Tommy?" Thea asked, directing the question at her brother, ignoring Moira completely. "Don't tell me you forgot to pick him up from the hospital."

"Actually sis, he remembered me for once." Tommy's cheerful voice entered the foyer, and Felicity inwardly groaned. Could this situation get any worse?

_Oh yeah,_ she grimaced, _the wedding._

Almost instantly, Thea's whole demeanour changed and she was all smiles as she wrapped him up in a hug. "I've missed you so much."

Tommy chuckled, pulling back to look at her. "You've been visiting me every day."

"That's not what I meant."

The room fell silent at the obvious meaning behind her words, and Tommy's smile faltered. "I know sis, and I'm sorry that I got so busy. It won't happen again."

Felicity glanced at the people around her, at Moira's loving expression, Tommy and Thea's smiles, but when she looked at Oliver, her stomach clenched. He was watching her, his eyes dark and giving nothing away, but she could feel the weight of his stare.

"Felicity," Moira said, smoothing a hand down her upper arm. "What was it you wanted to tell me?"

One more glance at Oliver had her shaking her head. "Nothing, it's not important."

Moira looked puzzled for a moment but quickly shook it off. "Very well, let's get ready for the rehearsal ceremony shall we?"

_Oh boy, _Felicity thought, _this is it._

* * *

"How do I look?" Tommy asked as he adjusted his shirt for the tenth time.

Oliver sighed. "Tommy, it's a rehearsal and you're wearing jeans. No one cares how you look."

They were standing next to the large windows in the sunroom towards the back of the mansion. Moira had deemed it the best place for a ceremony since the skylights allowed the sun to spread throughout the entire room. His mother had been busy, flower arrangements already lined the walls, and a deep red carpet had been laid to represent the aisle that Felicity would walk down.

Personally, Oliver couldn't care less where they had the ceremony; it really didn't make a difference to him. But he'd promised to be there so he had to bite his tongue.

Tommy frowned at him. "What crawled up your ass today? Bad guy get away or something?"

Oliver's jaw clenched with the effort it took not to respond to that. Instead, he went with a safer topic. "How are you feeling? Should you even be out of the hospital?"

Tommy shrugged. "Doc said I was good to go. Have to take it easy for a while and he wants to see me next week, but I'm good."

"Good."

Oliver shifted his weight from one foot to the other, his eyes lingering on the doorway where Felicity would enter. He could just imagine the look on her face as she walked down the aisle towards Tommy. The happiness of finally finding a family of her own, of having a man that loved her. Oliver could see it all so clearly, even how beautiful she would look in her dress, and it felt like acid coursing through his veins.

Regret washed through him as he recalled their last conversation. She'd asked him to give her a reason why she shouldn't marry Tommy, and for a split second, the words 'choose me' were on the tip of his tongue. But he couldn't do it. Whatever these feelings for her were, he couldn't allow them to outweigh his mission. Or his love for his brother. They had to come first.

Of course, not all that meant that he was thrilled to be witnessing their wedding day either. He didn't want to be here, he didn't want to see her bright, shining eyes as they latched onto Tommy. He didn't know if he could bear it.

"Oliver," Tommy grabbed hold of his arm to stop his pacing. "What's going on with you?"

_You suck,_ Oliver thought. He knew that his time on the island had left him damaged, that he was no good for someone as kind and sweet as Felicity, but his mind refused to give up the image of them together. Happy, content, for the first time in six years. He wondered if he was even able to feel that emotion anymore. Or was he so damaged that he was destined to be alone forever? "I'm fine, Tommy. Let's just focus on this rehearsal okay?"

Tommy opened his mouth to protest, and then quickly snapped it shut again when the minister stepped up in front of them. Oliver nodded politely in greeting and went back to watching the door, Tommy's conversation with the man fading into the background. Soft music began to play, filling the room with its sweet tones, and when Felicity appeared at the door, his mouth went dry.

He was vaguely aware of the rest of his family taking their seats, but he couldn't tear his eyes away from Felicity. She stood in the centre of the large doorway, eyes widening as she took in every detail of the room. His breath caught in his throat when her gaze landed on him, and she offered him the briefest of smiles before glancing to his right. Closing his eyes, he lowered his head, unable to watch her walk towards Tommy.

"Hi," he heard her whisper to his brother. She sounded so nervous that he wanted to hug her.

"Hey, yourself," Tommy replied.

When Oliver finally glanced up, he was surprised to see Felicity looking at him with a frown. As the minister began his speech, she shifted her attention back to Tommy. Her fingers toyed with the hem of her pink shirt, but Oliver narrowed his eyes when he saw them shaking so badly. If she was this nervous now, how on earth was she going to get through the real ceremony tomorrow?

He was so focused on her that he barely noticed the minister speaking. Everything seemed to fade away, and all he could see was Felicity. She flicked a glance at him and then down at the ground.

"I object," she whispered, and Oliver was sure he was hearing things.

"I uh, I didn't get to that part yet," the minister said, looking utterly confused.

Felicity looked at Oliver again, and this time he saw something different in her eyes, something that made his heart kick wildly in his chest. "I would… I would have to object too."

The minister looked at Tommy. "What about you?"

Oliver felt awful for his brother, this was not how he'd pictured this happening. But Tommy appeared to be more confused than upset.

"I'm thinking," Tommy said.

"What's going on here?" Moira asked, standing up from her seat.

Felicity grimaced and turned towards his mother. "I'm…" she drew in a deep breath, "I am in love with your son."

Moira chuckled. "I know that, dear, but-"

"Not that one," Felicity said, pointing at Tommy. Then her finger moved to point at Oliver. "That one."

Oliver blinked slowly as his mind raced to catch up, his heart now hammering. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he heard both his mother and sister gasp, but he couldn't stop a small smile from forming. Felicity was in love with him. She _loved_ him.

"Oliver," Walter said, disapproval dripping from his tone. "What did you do?"

"He didn't do anything," Felicity replied, her trembling hands now clutching the fabric of her shirt tightly. "It was me, it was all me."

Oliver watched, concerned as his mother sat back down, one hand held to her chest.

"Moira, are you okay?" Felicity asked, looking worried.

"I think you'd better explain, young lady," Walter advised, holding onto his wife's hand.

Felicity nodded, her eyes meeting Oliver's once again before she glanced at Tommy, and then back to Walter. She looked terrified.

"You remember that day at the hospital?" she asked, then shook her head at herself. "Of course you remember that. Well, um, there was a little mix-up."

"What kind of mix-up?" Thea asked, her arms crossed tightly across her chest.

"The day of the accident, I was heading into work, I saw Tommy walking across the street. He didn't see the car heading towards him so I pushed him out of the way. When we got to the hospital, nobody would let me see him, so somebody told the doctor that I was his fiancée but…"

Oliver felt something stirring in his gut, alarm bells going off in his head as she blew out a slow, unsteady breath.

"Only… it wasn't true. I was… I was never engaged to Tommy."

Squeezing his eyes shut, Oliver ran a hand through his hair. "Why didn't you say something?"

Tears welled up in her eyes. "Because I didn't know how to tell you."

His hands balled into fists by his sides as he turned his back on her.

"We never even met until that day outside QC. It's just when we were in the hospital room, everything happened so fast. _So_ fast. You were all so worried and scared and I just… I couldn't tell you."

Her voice was trembling now, but Oliver couldn't find a way to see past the anger that was now clouding his mind. Tommy stood by his side, silently watching as Felicity explained.

"And then I… I didn't want to tell you because I uh, I fell in love with you."

Walter blinked. "You fell in love with me?"

A watery chuckle escaped her. "No. No, yes, all of you. I went from being all alone, to being part of a family. I became a fiancée, a daughter, a sister…" she glanced at Diggle, "and a friend."

She turned to Tommy. "I might have saved your life that day, but you know what? You really saved mine. I never wanted to hurt anyone, that was never my intention. I just… I didn't know how to tell you all the truth. You allowed me to be a part of your family, and I haven't had that in a really long time. And I just didn't want to let go of that."

Oliver hated that he cared about the crack in her voice, or the tear slipping down her cheek. But what shocked him was seeing the expression on his mother's face. Moira Queen was usually so poised and collected, so to see her crying, and beginning to soften in her anger towards Felicity, was definitely jarring.

The room fell silent as everyone took a moment to absorb her words. Oliver had no idea what to say or do, and neither, it seemed, did his family.

Finally, Felicity let out a shaky breath. "So even though it was for a little while, I will love you all always. I'm very sorry."

Oliver wanted to say something, but what? Finding out that he'd been right in his initial assessment of her was a hard pill to swallow, and even though it was painful to hear her so upset, he couldn't offer her any comfort. He wouldn't.

So he watched as the dam finally broke and the tears spilled over. He couldn't take anymore, his chest ached from wanting to go to her, but his mind kept throwing up every little thing she'd said over the past week. Had it all been a lie?

He didn't know, and he didn't want to. Instead, he found himself moving towards the door, his mother's voice calling after him, fading away. When he reached the steps in front of the mansion, he paused, ran his hands down his face, and then made his way over to his motorcycle.

Felicity Smoak had wormed her way into all of their hearts, and now his family were left to deal with the fallout. Right now, he couldn't deal with that, so the next best thing was heading to the Foundry to hit something. Striking up the engine, he took one last glance back at the mansion.

Just as he was about to hit the throttle, Felicity flew through the door, one hand covering her mouth, the other holding her stomach. She looked surprised to see him there so she obviously hadn't come running after him. No, she was simply escaping the damage she'd done.

"I'm sorry," she mouthed, more tears streaming down her cheeks.

Snapping the visor of his helmet down, Oliver revved the engine angrily and took off, his tyres screaming against the concrete. He refused to look in the mirror, to look back at her. Whatever feelings he'd thought he had for her, he pushed them deep down.

The only thing he knew was that Felicity would never get the chance to hurt his family again. He would make sure of it.

_**To Be Continued...**_


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Okay guys, here is the next chapter. We are fast approaching the end of this story and I want to thank you all for your lovely comments and continued support. Hope you enjoy :D**

**_Chapter Nine_**

"Are you sure about this, Felicity?" Alex asked, standing in the doorway of her office with his arms crossed in front of him.

Felicity flicked a glance back at him and tried to smile. "It's for the best, Alex."

"I don't agree with that," he said, moving into the room. "So things got out of hand, but you told the truth in the end. No real harm done."

Trying to ignore the pain that came with that statement, Felicity sighed. "Right, no harm done. Except for the fact that I hurt everyone involved. You didn't see their eyes, Alex. Moira looked so betrayed, and Thea… she was devastated."

She chose not to mention Oliver, because that was an entirely different kind of pain that she couldn't ignore.

"They'll get over it. Look, I'm not saying that it's going to be easy, but at least give it some more time before you decide."

Felicity turned to her boss, her friend, and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Alex, I have to leave. Tommy is due back today and I'd rather not be here when that happens."

"But you won't even see him! You never did before, and besides, it's been three weeks. I doubt he's holding a grudge for this long."

Felicity didn't respond to that.

"Please think about this, Felicity. I don't want to lose my best employee."

Her mouth tilted up into a sad smile. "You're only saying that because no one else works the hours that I do."

Alex shook his head, his expression fierce. "No, I mean it. You're the best in the whole department and you know that. You can write programs that even I can't wrap my head around. Don't throw it all away because you feel like-"

"Like what? Like I lied to my boss and his entire family? Like I led them to believe that I was a good person? This is the _Queen_ family we're talking about here, I'm lucky enough that I haven't yet been blacklisted from getting another job. But Tommy's returning today and I can't see him wanting me working at his company."

"He can't fire you, Felicity," he said, his stance taking on a protective edge. She loved him for that, but it wasn't necessary. She made this mess, now she would deal with the consequences.

She went back to gathering her belongings and placing them into the white box on her desk. "I can't stay here, Alex. Please don't ask me to."

As always, Alex seemed to know when there was more lying beneath the surface. "In this company? Or the city?"

She shrugged, focusing her attention on her favourite coffee mug. "Both, I guess. I need to start fresh somewhere that isn't… here. It's too hard."

She lifted her head and met Alex's solemn gaze. Pursing his lips, he nodded. He clearly didn't agree, but he at least understood. That was all she could ask of him.

"Don't worry, I'm sure my replacement will be just as good."

Alex scoffed, drawing her in for a hug. "I sincerely doubt that. But you do what you need to do for you. Just remember that you can always call me, anytime. I'm always here for you, Smoak."

Felicity pressed her lips together hard to stop the tears that had gathered in her eyes from falling. "Thanks, Alex."

Just before he let her go, he whispered in her ear. "You _are_ a good person, Felicity. You're one of the best, don't ever forget that."

Before she could respond to that, there was a knock at the door, and Felicity froze when she saw who it was.

"Is this a bad time?" Tommy said, leaning against the doorframe.

_Frack_! This could not be happening, not when she had been so close to escaping unnoticed. Fortunately, Alex stepped in, half shielding her from Tommy's view.

"Mr Merlyn, so glad to see you back. You look well."

Tommy smiled politely, moving into the room as he offered his hand for Alex to shake. "I'm very well, thanks to Miss Smoak here."

Felicity felt her cheeks heating up at his blatant stare, and she had no idea how to respond to him. What was she supposed to say to the man she'd pretended to be engaged to?

"Yeah, I heard all about that. She's a hero." Alex said, keeping his voice soft but at the same time, daring Tommy to disagree.

Tommy nodded. "I couldn't agree more. Felicity, could I have a moment of your time?"

"Uh…" her breath caught in her throat, strangling her reply.

"I should get back to work anyway," Alex said, moving towards the door. As he reached to close it, he caught her eye and nodded towards Tommy, the warning to be careful evident in his gaze.

Resisting the urge to call him back in, Felicity fiddled with the hem of her shirt. "Can I help you with something, Mr Merlyn?"

"Oh, it's Mr Merlyn now? I would've thought leaving someone at the altar at least put you on a first name basis."

Her mouth dropped open, shock rendering her speechless for a moment. When she finally managed to push that away and suppress the guilt, she grimaced. "Technically, it wasn't an altar."

Tommy's mouth tilted up briefly before he carefully schooled his expression. "Either way, I think the result was the same. Don't you?"

"Uh… I guess so." She hung her head in shame, unsure of what else to say. She couldn't blame him for being angry; she would be if the situation were reversed. Although she liked to think that she would at least give the person a chance to explain.

Tommy crossed his arms over his chest and sat down on the edge of her desk. "Why did you do it?"

The question surprised her because she hadn't thought he'd want to know. He didn't look angry though, he looked… curious.

"I, uh… I don't know why I let it go on for so long. It was wrong of me, and I'm sorry."

Tommy reached out and grabbed her hand. "Hey, Felicity, look at me. I'm not here to vilify you. I'm just to trying to understand what happened. I was unconscious for most of it, remember?"

Pulling her hand back gently so she wouldn't offend him, Felicity took a step back and started pacing. "When I saw that car coming, I didn't think, I just reacted. And then at the hospital… like I said before, it all happened so fast. It was a genuine mix up. Someone thought that I was your fiancée and before I could correct her, your entire family rolled in."

Tommy chuckled. "Yeah, I can imagine that would've been a little overwhelming."

"A little? I felt like I was standing in the path of an oncoming train." She squeezed her eyes shut. "Oh God, not that I'm comparing your family to-"

Tommy held up a hand to stop her. "It's okay, Felicity. Believe me; I understand that they can be overly protective sometimes. Please, continue."

Wringing her hands together, Felicity cast her mind back to that day, the day where her entire life had changed. "I was going to tell them the truth, I swear. But when the doctor gave them the news of you being in a coma, your mother was devastated. That was when Walter mentioned her heart condition, and I… I just froze. I couldn't tell her, not then at least."

Tommy stayed silent for a few moments, absorbing her words. With each second that ticked by, Felicity felt as if she were on trial, awaiting a verdict. When he eventually looked at her, she almost sobbed in relief. He was smiling, not a trace of anger on his face.

"This whole situation is messy and complicated, Felicity. But I don't believe that you intended to hurt anyone. You seem like a really sweet person, from what I know of you. Which isn't much. But I can tell when someone has a good heart."

Standing up, Tommy walked over to her. "That being said, you have to understand that my family has its share of enemies. People who would love tear us down."

"I would _never_ do that, Mr Merlyn-"

"It's Tommy," he cut in.

"Tommy, I know it may not seem like it, but I meant what I said that day. I fell in love with your family. All of them."

Tommy tilted his head and studied her. "You said that you were alone for a long time…"

She nodded, trying to swallow past the lump in her throat. "My father died when I was little, and my mother… well, we don't see each other."

"Ever?"

"No, we don't get along."

He winced. "I'm sorry. But hey, if anyone knows about absentee parents and losing one to death, it's me. I was lucky; the Queens took me in and treated me no differently than they treated Oliver and Thea."

"Thea is a sweet girl; she clearly adores her big brothers."

Tommy smiled widely, his love for his baby sister shining through his eyes. It reminded Felicity of why she'd had a crush on him in the first place. All that seemed like a lifetime ago now.

"She can be challenging, but I wouldn't change her for the world. I'd do anything to protect her, and the rest of my family."

The fiercely protective look he gave her was eerily reminiscent of the one Diggle had had when he'd said the same thing to her. "I know that, but you don't need to worry when it comes to me. I won't be a problem for you anymore."

Tommy frowned as she started placing more of her items in the box on the desk. "You're leaving?"

She huffed out a laugh. "I think it's wise, don't you? To be honest, I'm kind of surprised that you haven't fired me already."

"Look, Felicity, what you did-"

"Was unacceptable, and stupid, and reckless."

"Okay, so maybe it wasn't the best way to introduce yourself to us, but like I said… I don't believe there was any malice in it. You just don't seem like that type of person, and trust me; I've seen a few in my time."

Her composure was slowly abandoning her; she could feel the emotions swirling in her chest, threatening to overtake at any moment. Of course she was relieved that Tommy wasn't here to exact his revenge, but she couldn't get her brain to accept that he was simply okay with what she'd done either.

"How are you so calm? I lied to your entire family, I hurt them. I've never done anything like it before in my life, I don't like hurting people. But I let it carry on for so long and…"

Tommy let out a soft breath as she fell silent. "Felicity, do you want to know how I know you're a good person? That you didn't really mean to let this happen?"

Crossing her arms in front of her, she held herself in a tight grip, feeling as if it was the only thing keeping her together at that moment.

Tommy had clearly noticed that because he stepped forward, raising his hands to gently grasp her upper arms. "I know because right now, I feel like you are punishing yourself way more than I ever could. That tells me a lot about who you are deep down."

"Still, I am sorry, Tommy," she whispered, staring into his eyes.

"I know, but you don't need to be anymore." He let go of her and stood back, still watching her closely. "I get the feeling that there's something more going on here though. Do you want to talk about it?"

She frowned. "About what?"

"About the elephant in the room," he said with a light chuckle. When she didn't react, he rolled his eyes. "Oliver!"

Felicity winced, hating that his name alone had the power to make her feel even worse. She hadn't seen or heard from him in weeks, and she missed him. "There's nothing to talk about."

"You love him."

"I do, but that doesn't matter anymore, does it? He's never going to forgive me."

Tommy winked at her, that boyish charm she'd initially found so attractive, once again making its appearance. "I wouldn't be so sure about that."

"I am."

Something in her tone must've warned him off because he held his hands up in surrender. "Okay, fine. Look, I know you don't really know me all that well, but if you do ever want to talk, you can always come to me."

She squeezed her eyes shut to keep her tears at bay. She'd done enough crying over the past few weeks to last a lifetime, and she didn't want to make Tommy feel uncomfortable. "That's so sweet, thank you."

Tommy nodded, his eyes once again glancing at the box on her desk. "Are you really sure about this?"

"Yeah, I'm sure. I can't stay here with all the whispering and the stares. It's too hard." No one really knew the truth, but the news of their engagement and subsequent break-up had been the talk of the office for weeks now. As far as they were concerned, she'd broken their employer's heart by walking out on him, and they clearly didn't approve. She had expected that from some of the women, the ones who never hid the fact that they wanted him. But the disgusted stares from some of the men had surprised her.

"Where will you go?"

She shrugged. "I don't know yet. All I know is that Starling City is not the place I want to be right now."

"I understand," he replied softly. Reaching out hesitantly, he drew her into a hug. "And hey, if you need a recommendation, I'll be happy to give you one."

Tommy Merlyn truly was an amazing man, she hadn't been wrong about that. She hugged him back, taking solace in his arms for a few moments. When she reluctantly pulled away, he patted her arm and walked towards the door.

"Thank you, Tommy."

She smiled when he threw her another wink, feeling a little lighter. "Take care of yourself, Felicity."

* * *

Oliver cursed as another bottle shattered, spilling tequila all over the counter. It was the third thing he'd broken in the last fifteen minutes, and his patience was about to break too.

"You won't make much of a profit if you break everything, Ollie," Thea said, taking a seat at the bar opposite him. He'd been so preoccupied with his own thoughts that he hadn't even heard her come in.

"What do you want, Thea?"

She snorted. "Nice to see that bug's still up your-"

"Thea!" Oliver slapped a hand down on the counter. Her eyes widened and before he could feel bad for making her jump, she shot out of her seat and grabbed his hand.

"Are you crazy?" she yelled, turning his hand palm side up. Truthfully, he hadn't even felt the shards of glass pierce his skin but the blood made it look worse than it was.

He yanked his hand out of her grasp. "I'm okay."

Thea tilted her head and gave him a look that was half-sympathetic and half-furious. It was a look only his mother could master and Thea had clearly learned from the best.

"Ollie, what's going on with you? You've been working here too much lately, barely coming home at all."

After removing the last shard of glass, Oliver grabbed a dry dishtowel and wrapped it around his hand. "My manager is out sick; I have a lot of work to get done. Is there a reason you came by?"

"Mom's worried about you," she replied in a soft voice. "I am too. You've been so distant since… well since the wedding that never was."

Oliver took a deep breath and released it slowly. The familiar stab of pain that radiated throughout his chest whenever he thought of that day was still just as sharp. "Everything's fine, Thea. There's no need for anyone to worry about me."

Thea shook her head as she sat down again. "You're such an idiot."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. You're an idiot. Ollie, for five years we all thought you were dead. When you came back, it was like we were finally alive again."

"Thea-"

"No, listen to me. When Mom finally gave up hope, when she decided to lay you and Dad to rest, I was so angry. At you, at Dad… at the whole situation. Because you left us. You left me."

Her quiet whisper on that last sentence made him feel awful. She was only twelve when he'd disappeared, and before that, they'd been so close. He didn't want to think about what she'd gone through in his absence.

"But underneath that, I just couldn't bear the thought that you might've suffered. That you might've been in pain. So now, when I see that you're hurting, which you clearly are, I want to be able to help."

Oliver sighed and reached over the counter to grab her hand. "You do help me, Thea. Every day."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Then why can't you let me in? If this is about Felicity-"

"It's not about her," he said, pulling his hand back so fast that she blinked in surprise.

"You can't even say her name, can you? Look, I know what she did was awful but…"

Oliver grabbed a clean towel and began wiping up his mess. But his sister refused to drop the subject.

"I was angry at her too, you know. For a long time, I couldn't believe that someone could do that. She seemed so nice."

Oliver shrugged. "People are rarely what they pretend to be on the surface."

"Do you really believe that?"

Yes, he did. He'd seen it first-hand over the years; he'd been betrayed too many times to believe otherwise.

Thea shook her head. "I don't think it's that simple, Ollie. Life isn't black and white."

"No, it isn't. But a person's actions tell you more about them than what comes out of their mouth. Some people can't hide their darkness."

He knew he sounded bitter, and that Thea had also noticed it. But talking about Felicity was harder than he wanted to admit. Her betrayal still stung, but what hurt the most was wondering if anything she'd told him was the truth. All the intimate things she'd confided in him now made him wonder if he knew her at all.

"I don't think Felicity is like that, Ollie," Thea said, drawing him back to attention.

When he scoffed, Thea raised a hand. "No, I really believe that. I think deep down she's a good person. She was just… I don't know, lonely I guess."

"She should've told the truth in the beginning. Then none of this would've happened."

Thea pursed her lips and nodded. "True, but then again, if she had… we would never have gotten to know her."

Oliver's eyes narrowed. "How do you even know if that's who she really is?"

He still couldn't bring himself to say her name. Even thinking it made his heart clench painfully.

"I just know. I saw her face when the truth finally came out, how terrified she was to tell us. But when she looked at you…"

Oliver blinked, his breath catching in his throat. "What?"

Thea gave him a warm smile and covered his hand with her own. "I could see that she's in love with you."

He squeezed his eyes shut. "We all thought she was in love with Tommy, too. Look how that turned out."

"Look, I know I'm only seventeen, and you probably don't think I know what I'm talking about, but trust me, that girl loves you."

He had no idea how to respond to that. When Felicity had said those words, he'd been so happy. But like everything else in his life, it had crashed and burned when she'd revealed the truth.

Thea stood up and grabbed her purse. "Maybe you should go and talk to her. It's the only way you'll get any answers."

He shook his head. "I have nothing to say to her, Thea."

"Suit yourself," she said sadly, turning to walk away.

"You said you were angry at her. Does that mean you aren't anymore?"

His little sister looked thoughtful for a moment before responding. "No, not anymore. Felicity isn't some vindictive gold-digger. If she was, she would've gone through with the ceremony. Getting to know her… we became close. I really felt like I was gaining a sister."

"So how can you just forgive her so easily?" Oliver wondered, genuinely curious.

Thea shrugged. "I know what it's like to be lonely, Ollie. And I have a family that I love and adore. Felicity doesn't have anyone. That kind of loneliness eats away at you. Makes you do things that you would never normally do."

"I don't think I can let it go that easily."

"You were alone on an island for five years, Ollie. I would've thought if anyone could understand loneliness, it would be you. Look, I'm not asking you to forgive her just yet, but you _should_ talk to her. I think that she could give you something you haven't had for a long time."

"And what's that?"

"Happiness."

Oliver let out a painful breath, but didn't reply. She got all the way to the door before turning back to look at him. "I just think that you'll always regret it if you don't at least try. I'll see you at home, and please, take care of that hand."

After she left, Oliver returned his attention to the broken bottle on the counter, his palm now stinging. He really should see to that. Grabbing the first aid kit, he got to work, Thea's words still ringing in his ears. But he had no idea what he would even say if he did go to see Felicity. He was still angry with her; he couldn't just erase that as if it were nothing.

But what if Thea was right? What if Felicity really did love him? He shook his head, cursing his own thoughts. If she loved him, she would've told him the truth. But she let her own fear get in the way; she betrayed him and his family.

Even if he could forgive her, he doubted that he would ever be able to trust her again. No, it was better this way. He just needed to find a way to get her out of his mind. Unfortunately, that was something easier said than done. Felicity Smoak had crawled her way into his heart, and he didn't know how to get her out.

* * *

By the time Felicity made it back to her apartment, it was after lunch and she was starving. After saying a final goodbye to Alex and a couple of other co-workers she'd become close with, she was feeling a little down in the dumps. That called for ice cream, and lots of it.

She dumped her box of belongings down onto the sofa and shrugged out of her jacket, draping it over the back of a chair on her way to the kitchen.

She'd just placed the carton on the counter when she heard a soft knock on her door. She sighed, glancing down at the inviting tub of mint-chocolatey goodness. "I'll be back for you, my love."

As she made her way through the living room, the knock came again, followed by a voice that had her groaning out loud.

"Felicity, hey open up, I know you're in there. I just saw you come in."

Throwing open the door; Felicity was greeted by the sight of Cooper looking rather serious, with his hands tucked into the pockets of his pants.

"Cooper, what's up?"

"Is it true that you're leaving?"

He looked so upset at the prospect that Felicity didn't have the heart to tell him the truth. "Who told you that?"

"Dad told me, he said that you gave him a week's notice."

Felicity sighed, leaning a hip against the doorframe. "Okay, yes it's true. I'm sorry Cooper. But I want you to know that I will miss you, you're a good friend."

His eyes took on a wet sheen and for a second, she was afraid that he was going to burst out crying. Instead, he sniffled and straightened himself up. "Listen, Felicity, I just want to say that…"

"That what?" she pressed when he fell silent.

"I'm uh, I'm sorry that it didn't work out with that guy. And uh, right now, you should take some time for yourself and get in touch with your inner child or something…"

Felicity couldn't help but chuckle at that. "What are you talking about?"

"Just, you know, get in touch with your feminine side. And uh, don't start eating cookies and cake and stuff like that because you'll blow up like my Aunt Roberta, you know?"

His pep talk was incredibly sweet, in a bumbling kind of way. But when he took her hand and stared into her eyes, she could see the sweet man beneath all the jokes and innuendos.

"You're better than that, Felicity. If he can't see how great you are, he doesn't deserve you."

Swallowing hard, Felicity nodded. "Thank you, Cooper. So uh, how's it going with Miss Third Floor?"

"Oh, she's…" Cooper smiled and nodded, pressing his thumb and forefinger together in an OK gesture, but when his face crumbled, Felicity saw tears gather in his eyes.

"Oh, Cooper." Surging forward, she wrapped an arm around his shoulders and ushered him into her apartment. "It's gonna be okay."

"Mm-hmm. Do you have any cookies?"

Felicity squeezed his shoulder as she closed the door behind her. "No, but I do have a lot of ice cream."

"Fudge-mint?" he asked, glancing at her with watery eyes.

"Even better. Mint chocolate chip."

He turned to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm really going to miss you, Felicity."

As he drew her into a tight hug, Felicity closed her eyes. "I'm going to miss you too."

* * *

Early the next morning, the sun was just beginning to rise when Oliver finally arrived back at the Foundry. It had been a long, frustrating night, and not even leaving a couple of criminals outside the police station had improved his mood.

It had only gotten worse since his conversation with Thea yesterday, because all he could think about was Felicity. Deciding to let her go was the hardest thing he'd ever done. But the right one, he'd told himself repeatedly.

Trudging down the stairs, his senses instantly alerted him to the fact that he was not alone. Drawing his bow, he nocked an arrow and slowly walked forward, stopping just behind the steel med table.

"Don't move," he growled, aiming his arrow at the back of the chair in front of the computer station. As the chair slowly began to turn, he wondered for a second if Felicity had come back.

"Is that any way to treat your own brother?"

"Tommy," he said, pushing his disappointment deep down as he lowered his bow. "What are you doing here?"

Tommy, looking fresh and ready to face the day, held his hands out. "I thought it was about time I came to see what you actually do at night. I gotta admit that this is more than I expected."

Oliver hummed as he sat down and moved his head from side to side to stretch out his neck. He'd taken a few hits during the course of the night, nothing he couldn't handle, but he was sore all over and in desperate need of a hot shower.

"So you were out all night?"

Cracking one eye open, he nodded at Tommy, who, to his surprise, actually looked concerned.

"You're being careful though, right? And by that I mean, you're not taking any unnecessary risks?"

"No, I'm just trying to make the city a little safer. You don't need to worry about me. I'm pretty sure we've already had this conversation."

Tommy rolled his eyes. "Jeez, can't a guy even be slightly concerned about his brother when he goes out fighting bad guys every night? It _is_ every night, isn't it?"

Oliver shrugged. "There's a lot to be done in Starling."

"Uh-huh. And I'm sure none of this has anything to do with recent events."

Stripping out of his black gloves, and then his jacket, Oliver made his way over to the training dummy behind the computer station. Tommy twirled in his chair, watching closely as Oliver delivered blow after blow. He stayed silent until Oliver paused to take a breath.

"So I guess asking you if you're still angry is kinda redundant now, huh?"

Oliver sighed as he turned back to face him. "What do you want, Tommy?"

"I don't want anything. I just came to see how you were doing, and clearly, I couldn't have picked a better time. Have you even looked in a mirror lately? You look like crap."

"You're over reacting, I'm fine."

Tommy stood and crossed his arms over his chest. "Oh I think this is just the right amount of reacting, Ollie. You're pushing yourself too hard. You can't keep this up. Sooner or later you're going to have to-"

"Tommy-" Oliver pointed a finger at him in warning.

"-deal with what happened!" he yelled. "Ollie, you're killing yourself here, and Mom and Thea are worried sick about you."

Oliver scoffed and turned back to the dummy, feeling the tension in his shoulders as he punched away.

"Have you seen Felicity since that day?"

"Nope, why would I?"

"I don't know, I thought maybe you'd want to fix things with her."

Stopping again, Oliver leaned his forehead against the dummy, the rough wood digging into his skin. "There's nothing to fix. There never was."

"Oh, that's good. So you won't mind if I ask her out for myself then?"

Oliver's head shot up so fast he went dizzy for a split second. The mere idea of Tommy dating Felicity for real was enough to make him nauseous.

Of course, he couldn't say that. So he shrugged instead. "Do what you want."

Tommy grinned and clapped his hands together. "Awesome. I think I'll ask her out to dinner, something intimate and quiet. Romantic."

Oliver clenched his jaw, refusing to rise to Tommy's baiting. "I'm sure she'd love that. Just don't go proposing to her too soon. At least wait until after dessert."

Tommy clutched a hand to his heart dramatically. "You wound me. Hey, do you think she'd like Italian?"

"I have no idea what she would like." That was a lie and they both knew it. The image of Tommy and Felicity sitting alone in a romantic restaurant had Oliver gripping the handles of the dummy so tight his knuckles turned white. He could see it so clearly, her smile as Tommy ordered her favourite wine, her eyes sparkling in the candlelight.

"Hmm, okay well… I guess Italian is a safe bet. I might even invite her back to my place after… for a nightcap."

Oliver knew that Tommy was goading him, trying to get a reaction, and the worst part of it was that it was working. The wood groaned beneath his palms, his injured hand throbbing painfully.

"Do you have her number? I want to call her. I guess it would still be on file at work but that seems a little unethical."

A loud, sharp crack filled the air as the wood snapped clean off the dummy.

"Dammit." Oliver muttered, shaking his bandaged hand to relieve the sting.

He glared over at Tommy, who was still grinning, and Oliver felt the urge to hit him instead.

"Fine," he said breathlessly. "You win. I don't want you to date her."

Tommy tilted his head. "See? That wasn't so hard was it?"

"It doesn't change anything, Tommy."

Tommy let out a long-suffering sigh and sat back down. "I went to see her yesterday."

Okay, that had his attention. "Why?"

"I wanted to talk to her, find out why she did what she did."

Oliver didn't care, it was done, and there was no going back. Why should the reason behind it make any difference? But still, he couldn't stop himself from asking. "And did you?"

"Sort of, I mean, she didn't really have a reason. It was all just a huge misunderstanding that got out of control. It wasn't her fault, Ollie."

Oliver rolled his eyes and returned to his workstation, pulling his chair out so that he could sit facing Tommy. "I understand that part, what I don't understand is how she could lie for so long."

Tommy nodded, his expression serious now. "I think that in the beginning, she panicked, didn't know what to say. When Walter told her about Mom's heart condition, she didn't want to make it worse so she kept quiet. After that, I guess it all spiralled. Come on, you of all people should know that secrets have a way of snowballing. You keep a pretty big one from the people you love, too."

Choosing to let that little dig go, Oliver focused on what he was saying. "She didn't have to pretend, she didn't have to make the effort of getting close to everyone. It was all a show."

Tommy's eyes narrowed into slits. "Getting close to you, you mean."

"That's not what I-"

"Hey, look I get it. She kept the truth from all of you and you feel betrayed. But Oliver, did you ever stop to think that this is hurting her as much as it is you?"

The truth was, he didn't want to think about that. Because he remembered the look on her face before he rode off on his bike. The sorrow and regret in her eyes had stayed with him, making him feel awful, and in turn, that made him even angrier.

"You want to know what I think?"

"Not really."

"I think," Tommy carried on, ignoring him. "I think that you let your guard down with her, you let her see a part of you that you thought you'd lost after the island. And I think that makes you angry. Because she made you vulnerable."

"You're talking out of your ass; this has nothing to do with me. This is about her, about her secrets and-"

"And how do you think she'd react to your secret?"

"She already knows," Oliver blurted, grimacing as Tommy's jaw dropped.

"Explain."

Leaning forward, resting his elbows on his knees, Oliver sighed. "It was an accident; I never wanted her to find out. I got hurt one night, pretty badly, and she was waiting in the alley behind the club in her car. She helped me inside and stayed while Digg fixed me up."

Tommy was stunned. "So she didn't freak out? Threaten to turn you into the cops?"

Oliver thought back to that night, to waking up and discovering her in the Foundry. She'd been shocked, but not entirely surprised. But her concern and genuine kindness had surprised him. "No, she just… accepted it. Actually, she even helped out a little, fixed up my computer system."

He felt a small smile pulling at his lips as he remembered the way she'd reacted to it. "Apparently it hurt her to see it like that. So she upgraded everything."

"Wow," Tommy murmured. "She really does love you."

Oliver frowned, his smile fading. "No, she doesn't. How can you lie like that to someone you love?"

"You know, if I thought I could actually achieve it, I would punch you so hard right now."

The glare his brother sent him made Oliver's temper flare. "Give it a try."

Tommy sighed. "Look, I don't know what happened between you two when I was in my coma, but I have eyes, Ollie. I see what this is doing to you; and I've seen what it's doing to her."

He leaned forward, mirroring Oliver's pose, leaning his elbows on his knees. "Do you love her?"

The question caught him off guard. "I don't really know her."

Tommy looked down at his hands. "When we were younger, we had a lot of fun with women, and that was great, but there was nothing in it. It was simply… fun. We never let ourselves get too involved. But that day in the sunroom, I saw something."

Oliver groaned, seeing where this was heading. "Tommy-"

"On the way home from the hospital, you seemed antsy about something. I left it alone because I thought you'd just had a bad night here. But at the mansion, when you saw her, you were almost cold towards her. I couldn't understand why, because Felicity is a sweet person."

_Yeah, she was,_ Oliver thought. But all that changed the minute the truth came out.

"When she walked into the sunroom, your eyes never left her. And the further she got down the aisle, the more your mood soured. So when I ask if you love her, please don't insult my intelligence by telling me that you hardly know her."

Oliver rubbed at his forehead, closing his eyes against the image of Felicity walking towards him that day. He didn't want to love her; he didn't want her to have that kind of power over him.

Except… she did.

Without warning, his mind dredged up the conversation he'd had with her, right there in the Foundry, when she'd asked him to give her a reason not to marry Tommy. He'd wanted to tell her not to do it, that he wanted to be with her. That he could love her the way she deserved to be loved.

But could he? Did he really deserve someone like Felicity Smoak? Could her light really counteract his darkness?

"It doesn't matter if I love her, Tommy," he said, his voice dropping to a whisper. "I can't be with her."

"Why not? Because of this?" he asked, gesturing to the lair around them. "That's ridiculous. She knows about all of it, and she still stayed with you. She still helped you."

"How am I supposed to forget what she did? How can I ever trust her?"

Tommy scrubbed both hands down his face in frustration. "You're just using that as an excuse to stay away from her, Ollie. Deep down you know that she never meant to hurt anyone. I think you're scared to let her in because it's easier to be alone."

Once again, images ran through his mind, of all the times she berated him for not taking care of himself. The way her skin felt against his when she'd changed his dressings. Hindsight was a beautiful torture, because now he could see how much she'd shown that she cared for him.

She cared.

He'd never let himself think about a future with her because he'd always believed she was in love with Tommy. And there was no way he would ever do that to his brother. But maybe Tommy was right, maybe he was just afraid that she would see how damaged he was, and run the other way screaming.

Tommy reached out and clapped him on the shoulder. "You should go and see her. Talk to her. And if it makes you feel any better, you have my blessing."

It did make him feel better, actually. It might've have all been fake, but he'd never wanted to betray Tommy like that.

"I wouldn't know what to say to her, Tommy."

"Well," he said, glancing at his watch. "You'd better figure it out because she's leaving."

Oliver's heart lurched in his chest. "What do you mean she's leaving?"

"I mean, she packed up her things, quit her job, and is possibly leaving the city. She's been beating herself up pretty badly about this whole situation, Ollie. She feels so guilty for misleading us."

Oliver stood up so fast that his chair rolled back and slammed into the table. "Did she say where she was going?"

Tommy winced as he got to his feet. "No, sorry dude. She was pretty upset. But hey, I saw her yesterday so chances are she's still in Starling."

Oliver nodded, determination rushing through him as he headed for the stairs.

"Um, Ollie?" Tommy's voice stopped him halfway up. "Do you think maybe you should get changed first?"

He glanced down at his green leathers and cursed. Rushing back down, he grabbed his jeans and quickly changed into them, muttering something under his breath.

"What? I didn't catch that, buddy."

"I don't want to lose her," he said a little louder.

"Then don't, idiot. Go!"

"Thanks, Tommy." Heart hammering inside his chest, Oliver raced up the stairs and out into the daylight, making a beeline for his motorcycle.

* * *

By the time he'd reached her apartment, his hands were shaking. What if he was too late? He raced up the stairs and knocked on her door.

"Felicity?" He knocked again after there was no answer. "Felicity, it's Oliver, please open the door."

After the fourth knock and subsequent silence, he could no longer trick himself into thinking that she wasn't answering simply because she didn't want to see him.

He reached for the door handle, surprised when it twisted in his palm and the door swung open to reveal an empty apartment.

"She's not here," A voice said behind him. He turned around to see Cooper standing on the step below him, an angry expression on his face.

"Do you know where she is?"

"Haven't you hurt her enough? She left because of you."

Resisting the urge to haul this guy up against the wall, Oliver blew out a breath. "I need to talk to her, so please, if you know where she is, tell me."

Cooper studied him for a long moment, and then shrugged. "I don't know, she didn't tell me. She just said that she needed to be anywhere that wasn't Starling City. Nice job, by the way. Felicity's the nicest girl on the planet and you ran her out of town."

Oliver tried hard not to let his words get to him, but it was useless. Cooper was right. And he clearly cared a lot about Felicity if the anger swirling in his eyes was any indication.

"When did she leave?"

"Why should I tell you?"

Oliver's hands balled into fists at his sides, but he pushed the anger down. Felicity would hate him for sure if he hurt her friend. "I promise that I am not going to upset her, I just _really _need to talk to her. I need to make it right, so please… when did she leave?"

Cooper drew in a long breath, and then released it slowly. "She left about four hours ago. Said she was catching a plane but didn't say where to. That's all I know."

"Thanks, Cooper, I really appreciate it."

He didn't wait for a response as he ran down the stairs two at a time, and back to his motorcycle. His heart beat a frantic pace in his chest as he rode back to the Foundry. He had to find her. Cooper said she was catching a plane, so hopefully he'd be able to do a search for her name and find out where she was heading.

Kicking up his speed as he raced through the city, Oliver berated himself. He'd been so stupid ignoring her for the past three weeks. Tommy was right, he was in love with her, and he couldn't deny it anymore.

Now, he only hoped that he would have the chance to tell her face to face.

_**To Be Continued...**_


	10. Chapter 10

**_A/N: _****I know guys, I know. I suck at updating. I have been having a few personal problems that has prevented me from writing lately. But they seem to be resolving slowly. So I'm here with a brand new chapter for you, I really hope you enjoy because I loved writing this one. After this, there will be two more chapters and then that will be the end of the story. Thank you for your continuing support, I can't express fully what it really means to me. I love you all :D**

**_Chapter Ten_**

Sitting in front of his computers in the Foundry, Oliver cursed and slammed his fist down on the desk. How hard could it be to find one person? He'd been trying for over an hour and he couldn't find any record of her at the airport, no flights booked… nothing.

Trying to reign in his temper, he stood and stretched out his back. But the tightness in his chest only grew worse. Where was she? A fleeting thought occurred to him that maybe Cooper had given him false information in order to protect Felicity. But he quickly dismissed that. Cooper seemed like a genuine guy. Sure, he had a crush on Felicity, but he seemed to want what was best for her.

With a low growl, he sat back down, this time to try a different approach. The more time he wasted, the more time she had to get further away from him. He couldn't let that happen.

Footsteps coming down the stairs alerted him to Diggle's arrival. Oliver kept working, not even glancing up as he reached the last step and began walking towards him.

"Hey, man. What are you doing here so early? Did you spend the night here again?"

Oliver flicked a quick glance at the box of donuts that he placed next to him on the desk but he made no move to take one.

Diggle sighed heavily. "Oliver, when is this going to stop? It's been weeks, man. You can't keep throwing yourself into work to avoid your problems."

"I'm not," he replied distractedly.

"You're so full of crap."

That got his attention. He glared up at his bodyguard, who was also one of his closest friends. "Excuse me?"

"Felicity! When are you going to forgive her?"

"Digg, listen-"

"No, I don't want to hear your self-pity crap, Oliver. That girl doesn't have a mean bone in her body. Deep down, you know that. None of this is her fault; she didn't want to deceive anybody. She wanted to tell the truth but she didn't know how."

Oliver's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "How do you know that?"

For the first time since starting his tirade, Diggle faltered. "She's… well she's too nice. She doesn't deserve you freezing her out like this. She was only trying to spare your family the pain of the truth."

Oliver pinched the bridge of his nose. "You knew, didn't you?"

"What?"

"You knew that she wasn't really Tommy's fiancée."

Diggle scoffed, but his eyes told Oliver all he needed to know. "That's ridiculous, man."

Oliver didn't even give him a chance to deny it. "How long did you know?"

Diggle dropped his gaze to the ground, and Oliver knew that he knew he wasn't going to win this. "Since the first night. She came back to the hospital early in the morning and she didn't realise I was there. She talked to Tommy, told him that she was sorry."

"Oh my God." Oliver threw his hands up in the air and turned his back, unsure how to feel about this new development. He could feel the familiar anger starting to gnaw at him.

"She was panicking, Oliver. The poor girl had no idea what to do."

Oliver whirled around and pointed a finger at him. "And what did _you_ do? Did you tell anyone else? No. Why not?"

He could see the anger starting to swirl in his friend's eyes, but he refused to back down. This could have all been avoided if he'd spoken up that night.

"You want the truth?" he asked, stepping forward into Oliver's space. "Fine. You weren't there that night, when your mother and sister were so devastated. We thought Moira was going to have another heart attack because she was so distraught. When she found out who Felicity was, she was so happy that Tommy had found someone. She didn't even question it."

"She should have," Oliver grumbled, remembering the way his mother's eyes lit up when she first spoke about Felicity.

"Maybe, but that's not the point I'm making. Felicity gave Moira something she hasn't had for a long time. Hope. Your mother felt like she finally had her son back. In the face of all that, Felicity didn't have the heart to tell her the truth. And neither did I."

Oliver shook his head. "So… what? You just let her carry on lying to everyone?"

"It wasn't like that. I went to her apartment, and I told her that I knew. If you'd seen her face, Oliver, you would've done the same thing I did. She apologised and told me that she was going to tell the truth the next day."

Diggle sucked in a breath, as if preparing himself. "I told her not to say a thing. So if you want to blame someone, blame me. She doesn't deserve it."

Oliver's patience snapped. He surged forward, getting right up in Diggle's face. "What the hell were you thinking? Where was your loyalty?"

"I was trying to repair what you broke when Tommy found out about your secret!" he yelled back.

Oliver stumbled back a step. "What?"

Diggle sighed and sat down on the corner of the desk. "Felicity wasn't a bad person, Oliver. She wasn't out for your family's money or fame. She just got caught up in something that she couldn't control. I wanted to help her, and I wanted to help your family. When Tommy woke up and couldn't remember her, I thought that was the perfect way out."

Oliver felt his anger start to deflate a little as he sat down in the chair and listened.

"I thought that if Tommy couldn't remember her, he could just break up with her and that would be it. They could go their separate ways and nobody had to get hurt."

As much as he didn't want to, Oliver did see the logic in that. But that wasn't what happened. "So how did he end up proposing to her instead? And why the hell did she accept?"

Diggle stiffened, his eyes focusing on something beyond Oliver's shoulder. "I might've talked him into it."

Oliver shook his head, sure that he wasn't hearing correctly. "I'm sorry… might've?"

The older man shrugged. "Like I said, I wanted to help them both. I thought that she could be really good for him. And if he took the time to get to know her, he'd soon fall for her. It's impossible not to."

Didn't he know it? How many times had he berated himself for falling for what he'd thought was his brother's girl? How many times had he tried to tell himself that it was nothing but curiosity? But there was no denying the fact that he had fallen for her… hard. There was just something about her.

"Look, man, for what it's worth, I'm sorry. But you didn't see the pain in her eyes when I went to her apartment. She looked so… alone. I couldn't bear to see her like that."

Oliver squeezed his eyes shut tight. He didn't want to let Diggle off the hook so easily. What he did was wrong, perhaps worse than what Felicity had done. He tried to hold onto his anger, but it slipped through his grasp, leaving a mild irritation in its place.

"I never expected the two of you to click. It never occurred to me. But I'm not sorry that it happened, because you two could be happy together."

"And how could you possibly know that?" Oliver countered.

"You're the only one who's taken it this hard, man. Yes, I understand that everyone was angry with her, but I talked to your Mom yesterday and she doesn't hold any resentment towards Felicity. Thea either. But you, you felt betrayed, didn't you?"

Raising his gaze to the ceiling, Oliver shook his head. "What else was I supposed to feel? I spent the past two weeks telling myself that these feelings… whatever they were, weren't real. That I was betraying Tommy somehow. Then I find out that I could've taken that chance all along."

"But if this hadn't happened… you'd never have met her."

Oliver was well aware of that, and the thought of not knowing Felicity left a sour taste in his mouth. It was crazy, she'd only been in their lives a short time, but he couldn't imagine her not being there. She'd told him she loved him, in front of his entire family. That had to have been terrifying for her, but she'd done it. She'd admitted to everyone what he didn't even have the nerve to admit to himself.

Diggle, obviously mistaking his silence for something else, carried on. "You have every right to be mad at me, and I'll take it, but don't keep blaming her."

"I don't."

"Excuse me?"

Lifting his head, he met Diggle's surprised gaze. "I don't blame her. At least, not anymore. Yes, I was angry with her, I don't think I've ever felt anything like it. And yes, I felt betrayed. But I don't feel that way anymore."

He leaned forward in his chair. "Look, I'm not happy about what you did, but I can understand… at least a little… why you did it."

Diggle smiled. "I'll take it. And again, I'm sorry. But you know, if you two got together, if something good came out of this whole mess, I'd call that a win."

Oliver returned his attention to the computer screen, not quite ready to laugh about it just yet. "Well, that would mean I would have to find her first."

Diggle frowned. "What do you mean?"

"She quit QC. Tommy came by to tell me and to give me his blessing, weirdly enough. She's leaving the city, Digg."

Diggle shot up off the desk. "Then what the hell are you waiting for? Go get her!"

"I tried. I went to her apartment and Cooper told me she'd already left. He said she was catching a flight but he didn't know where to. I've been trying to pin down a location ever since," he said, pointing to the screen that still held no useful information.

Diggle nudged his shoulder. "Move, I'll find her. I swear, how did you manage to get stuff done before I joined your crusade?"

This time, Oliver did smile. "I just did it the old fashioned way. Fear and intimidation."

Diggle quickly got to work, bringing up a new search program that Oliver had never seen before. "Well, your girl left us the best way of finding her."

Hope flared in his chest as he watched Diggle's fingers fly across the keyboard. "That's Felicity's program?"

"Sure is."

He felt a surge of pride as he finally came to realise just how much Felicity had done for him. She'd changed everything. And not just with his computers. With his heart too.

"There she is!" Diggle said, pointing at the screen. Oliver leaned over his shoulder to get a closer look at the security footage. Right there, in the middle of the airport lounge, sat Felicity. His heart sank as he took in her posture. She looked so defeated, so small, and sad. That was his fault. She was leaving her job, her home, everything she'd come to love, because of him. He had to make it right.

"Where is she going?" he asked, his fingers rubbing furiously against his thumb.

"Says here…" Diggle squinted at the screen, "…she just purchased two one-way tickets, two different destinations."

"She has no idea where to go." Oliver's heart sank a little more. "She's not leaving, she's running away."

Diggle abruptly spun the chair around. "Go get her, Oliver."

Prying his eyes away from the screen, Oliver nodded and turned to head for the stairs.

"And don't screw this up, man. If you hurt her again, you won't have to worry about the criminals in this city. I'll take you down myself."

Ignoring the idle threat, Oliver grabbed his motorcycle helmet and raced up the stairs. He had no idea where she would decide to go, so that meant he didn't know how much time he had to get there.

Kicking his bike into action, he sped off, praying that he would catch her in time.

* * *

Felicity hated waiting around. Hated it with every fibre of her being. So sitting in the waiting lounge of the airport was not something she cared to do. But right now, it was where she needed to be. She had to get out of this city. There were too many painful reminders everywhere she looked. She had no one to blame but herself, she'd lost everything because of her own actions, but that didn't make it hurt any less.

She couldn't really blame Oliver for ignoring her. As tough as he liked to appear to be, she was willing to bet that deep down he was hurt. Angry mostly, but hurt too. She just wished that he would've let her explain, apologise… whatever. It didn't matter anymore. He'd obviously decided that he wanted nothing to do with her, so what was really keeping her here?

As she sat tapping her foot against the floor, she stared down at her tickets. One on each knee, two different places, and she had no idea which one to pick. It didn't really matter, she guessed, she had no one at either end to meet her. She could go wherever she wanted. She had toyed with the idea of going back to Las Vegas to see her mother, but decided that would be just as painful. Especially if her mother didn't want to see her.

So she'd chosen two destinations at random and hoped that she could find some way to live her life again.

Someone nudged the back of her chair, and she turned around to see a little boy, no older than five or so, lying on the row of seats behind her. He was clearly bored, wiggling his legs around, and hating waiting as much as Felicity did. She could sympathise with him on that.

A young woman, evidently the boy's mother, spotted what he was doing and gave her an apologetic glance before reprimanding him. Felicity shook her head and smiled, watching as the woman grabbed his hand and walked away. They stopped in front of a man who was holding a baby, and Felicity felt her heart squeeze painfully as he lowered his head to capture the woman's lips in a gentle kiss.

With a sigh, she turned back around, wishing, just once, that she could have her own family like that. They just looked so happy. She prided herself on being a strong, independent woman, and for the most part, she was. But late at night, when the thoughts started to creep in, she wondered what it was about her that made her so hard to love.

Blinking fast to dispel the tears she could feel coming, Felicity glanced down at her tickets. "Eenie, meenie, miny, mo…"

"I guess that's where I'm going then," she said to herself as her finger landed on the Chicago ticket. She didn't know what she would do in Chicago, having never been there before, but it seemed as good a place as any to start over. After checking the departure gate and time, Felicity stood, grabbed her suitcase, and stepped out into the main atrium.

The departure lounge was almost full by the time she got there, so she took the only remaining seat by the doorway and tucked her case in between her legs. She let out a deep sigh as she leaned her head back against the wall behind her and closed her eyes. Was she doing the right thing? Uprooting her entire life to go to a place she'd never even visited before?

Starting fresh seemed like a good idea, but could she really do it alone? Sure, she'd been alone when she'd first arrived in Starling too, but as time had gone on, she'd created a few wonderful friends at Queen Consolidated. Starling was a big city, what were the chances of her running into Oliver?

She scoffed at herself; of course the chances were high. The Queen family was one of the most talked about in the entire city, nothing about them went unnoticed. If she stayed, the press would soon find her, even if the Queens didn't. No, she couldn't stay here, and not only because she no longer had a job. But going to a new city? That was scary.

As the nagging thoughts continued to assault her, Felicity wondered if maybe Vegas wasn't such a bad idea after all.

* * *

"Where is she, Digg?" Oliver asked breathlessly as he ran through the airport. It had taken much longer to get here than he'd thought and his stomach twisted at the realisation that he might not make it in time.

"I don't know, man. Give me a minute."

"We don't have a minute." Oliver heard the clacking of keys through his comm link as he raced through the main atrium. "Diggle!"

"I got her! She just checked in… oh."

Oliver came to a dead stop as Diggle went silent. "What?"

"She's going to Chicago, Oliver. You need to move, that flight is boarding as we speak."

Pinching his nose in frustration, Oliver growled. "Which gate?"

"Three B. Hurry!"

Glancing at the signs around him, Oliver looked for the right one and quickly took off in that direction. He had to be on time, he had to be. There was no other option.

By the time he reached the departure lounge, it was empty, and the clerk was just closing the door that led down to the plane.

Deflated, he stopped in the middle of the room and braced his hands on his knees. "She's gone, Digg."

"You missed her? Dammit, Oliver!"

Oliver squeezed his eyes shut tight, his hammering heart now racing for a different reason. Felicity was gone. Turning towards the window, he watched as the airplane began reversing away from the terminal. Everything he'd never knew he needed was on that plane. Touching his forehead to the cool glass, he closed his eyes and thought about his next move. He couldn't just let her fly out of his life. He had to find her. That meant following her to Chicago. But how on earth would he find her once he was there?

He stayed where he was for a few more minutes, watching as the plane began its descent down the runway, taking his heart along with it.

"Excuse me? Has somebody, by any chance, handed a purse in? It's silver with a panda bear on the front of it."

Oliver froze; too afraid to turn around for fear that his mind was playing tricks on him. But his breath hitched as he caught her reflection in the window. _Felicity_. She was still here.

The clerk smiled and reached under her desk. "I wondered if you'd come back, I was just about to look through it and see if there was a contact number. You're lucky I saw it. Here you go."

Oliver watched her reflection as she hugged the purse to her chest, smiling at how adorable the action was.

"Oh, thank you so much! You are a lifesaver! I was just about to buy another ticket, which I am going to have to line up for again now… ugh! Never mind, thank you again."

She was buying another ticket? Where to? _No_. He was not going to let that happen.

He turned around at the same time she did, and waited for her to notice him. The second her eyes landed on him, her entire body froze as if she'd just walked into an invisible wall. Her mouth opened, then closed, then opened again.

Oliver stepped towards her slowly, one hand reaching out to… what? Hold her? Hug her? He wanted to do both, but he didn't know how she was going to react. "Felicity…"

Still holding her purse to her chest, Felicity blinked a few times, and he could see the effort she was making to get her thoughts under control. "Oliver, what are you doing here?"

He paused right in front of her, scared to move closer, afraid that she might turn away. Because although some might understand his actions and see them as justified, he couldn't deny that ignoring her for the past few weeks without allowing her a chance to explain was a little cowardly. He frowned down at her, unsure where to start. "You're… you're leaving?"

Shifting her weight from one foot to the other, she nodded but kept her eyes fixed on a point behind his head. "It's what I need to do right now, Oliver."

He didn't accept that, but decided to keep his mouth shut. "But Chicago?"

She grimaced, and Oliver tried not to notice how cute her expression was when her nose wrinkled up like that. "I changed my mind. I'm going… somewhere else."

"Where?"

This time, she met his eyes as she frowned. "What are you doing here, Oliver? Did you come to make sure that I'm really going? Because you don't have to worry, I won't ever bother your family again."

"No! That's not what I meant." He sighed in frustration because his words just weren't coming out right. "I came here to talk."

She looked sceptical, and he couldn't exactly blame her. He had shown up unexpectedly after weeks of silence. "What is there to talk about? You made your feelings perfectly clear the last time I saw you."

"I'm sorry," he mumbled, shoving his hands into his jeans pockets to stop himself reaching out for her.

"What for? You had every right to be angry, Oliver. I don't blame you. I'm just so confused, because you showing up here was the last thing I ever expected to happen. How did you even know where I was anyway?"

"Tommy. He came to see me. He told me you were leaving and I… I couldn't let that happen. So I went to your apartment and Cooper told me where you were."

Felicity's eyes widened slightly. "You couldn't let that happen? What changed?"

"I did," he answered honestly. "When Tommy told me that you'd quit your job and were leaving the city, I didn't know how to feel. But I knew that I didn't want you to go."

Wanting her to see how serious he was, Oliver reached out and pried one of her hands off her purse, squeezing it tightly in his. "I was angry, Felicity. I can't deny that-"

"Like I said, you had every right to be."

"Please, let me finish," he said softly, and she nodded for him to continue. "I _was_ angry with you; I couldn't understand why a person would do what you did. I got lost in that anger; I allowed it to control me. I spent the past few weeks living in the Foundry, going out every night to find crime. That was all I could focus on. I hardly went home, and when I did, it was only to shower and change my clothes. I distanced myself from Thea, my mom, even Tommy."

Felicity looked at him with a pained expression. "I'm so sorry, Oliver."

"When Tommy told me you were leaving, I realised something. All that anger, it wasn't because you lied. Because deep down, I knew that you weren't a bad person. It was because I…"

"Because you what?" she asked when he fell silent.

He stared into her eyes, and the vulnerability he saw there floored him. "Because I wasn't sure if anything we had was real or if it had all been in my imagination."

His heart sank when she pulled her hand out of his and stood back. But then she placed her purse into her suitcase and took his hand back between both of hers. "Oliver, I meant what I said that day at your house. Meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to me. I never planned it and I never imagined that you could return those feelings. I always knew that once the truth came out, I would never be able to fix it."

He opened his mouth to speak but she held a hand up to stop him. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I did what I did. I never meant for it to go that far, but your family became important to me. _You_ became important to me. I just didn't want to let go of that. It was so nice to finally be a part of a real family."

"I know that it was selfish and I hurt a lot of people, but I need you to know that I never planned to become Tommy's fiancée. It just all happened so quickly and I got scared. The deeper I got, the harder it was to tell the truth."

"Felicity," he whispered, placing his other hand on her shoulder. "I understand."

"You do? Because honestly, I wouldn't blame you if you hated me right now."

"I don't think I could ever hate you." Tilting his head, he smiled down at her. "But I understand what it's like to be alone. Look, I know that you didn't plan this, and I know that you never wanted anyone to get hurt. But what about you?"

"What about me?"

"You were hurting, Felicity. I could see it in your eyes. I always assumed it was because you were worried about Tommy but I found myself wanting to do anything to erase that look. To see you smile."

Felicity swallowed hard, her eyes focusing on their joined hands pressed against his chest. "I've been alone for a long time, Oliver. I'm used to that. What you saw was guilt. I hated what I was doing, but what made me feel worse was the way I felt about you."

He frowned at her words. "What do you mean?"

Slowly, she raised her eyes to his. "Your family took me in; they showed me what it was like to be loved. They talked about Tommy constantly, supporting me through his coma because they believed we were together. They were amazing, and the entire time I felt awful, because I was falling in love with Tommy's brother."

She squeezed his hand in both of hers. "I never expected that to happen, Oliver. It came out of the blue, but I will never regret it. Even if you never felt the same, the way I felt about you was the best part of my life."

Oliver's heart lurched in his chest. He'd heard the words before, but he'd been too shocked and angry at the time to really take them in. And in the weeks since then, he'd allowed his fear to take root and grow. Fear that what had happened between them had been in his imagination. That maybe he'd read too much into the situation.

Hearing her say that she loved him again, it felt amazing. For her to think that he might not feel the same was abhorrent to him.

Letting go of her hand, Oliver traced his palms up her arms, over her shoulders and up to cup her face. "I love you, Felicity."

Eyes widening, Felicity sucked in a sharp breath. "Really? Because we haven't known each other very long, and I know that we spent a lot of time together, but-"

He chuckled as he smoothed his thumbs over her cheeks, cutting off what was sure to be the start of another ramble. "I _love_ you. I don't know when exactly it happened. Maybe it was when I drove you home that night, or when we fell over on the ice and you laughed so freely. Maybe it was a hundred little things that you did, I don't know. But I do know two things. I know that you are remarkable; you saved my life that night in the Foundry. You helped me instead of just turning me in to the cops."

He watched, transfixed as her cheeks flushed. "And uh… the second thing?"

"The second thing I know, without a doubt, is that I'm in love with you, Felicity Smoak."

A tiny little eep sound erupted from her as he lowered his head, his mouth capturing hers with an intensity that surprised him. Her hands grasped onto the sleeves of his jacket, wrapping around his wrists. Oliver had never in his life, felt anything like this. Her lips so soft and warm against his, the way she tilted her head just slightly, so that their mouths fit perfectly together.

Deepening the kiss, Oliver sucked her lower lip between his, revelling in the warmth of her tongue as it swept across his upper lip. As her grip on his wrists tightened, all the pain and anger of the past few weeks melted away. Everything that had happened, how she had come to be in his life, none of that mattered anymore. Because he finally had her in his arms, right where she belonged. He knew that as surely as he knew his own name.

When Oliver reluctantly pulled away, he catalogued each emotion as it crossed her expression. Pressing his forehead against hers, he tried to get his breathing under control.

"I love you," she whispered, barely loud enough for him to hear.

He let go of her face and wrapped his arms around her waist, bringing her flush up against his chest. "I love you, too."

But as he stared down at her, he could see the worry still lingering in her eyes. "What's wrong?"

She bit her bottom lip and shook her head. "What is your family going to think? I know that Tommy and Diggle are okay with me, but your Mom… and Thea. Oh God, Thea."

"Hey," he said softly, tightening his hold on her, "I really don't think you need to worry about that, Felicity."

"Are you sure?"

He took a deep breath and then placed a light kiss on her forehead. "I'm sure."

The worried look didn't totally disappear, but it did lessen, and Oliver knew that she would only feel better after she'd talked to his family.

"So uh… what now?" she asked.

"Now…" he said, letting go of her so that he could reach down to pick up her suitcase. "Now, we go home."

When she smiled at him, he felt like the luckiest man in the world. "I like the sound of that. You might have to help me look for a new apartment though; I gave my notice a week ago. I don't know if my landlord found a new tenant yet or not."

He chuckled and wrapped an arm around her waist as they began walking towards the exit. "Considering how much of a crush Cooper has on you, I don't think that will be a problem."

"Cooper does not…" she sighed as he raised his eyebrows at her. "Fine, I guess he does. But hey, he said we were intimate once, right? So it should be fine."

Oliver rolled his eyes, feeling his cheeks heat in embarrassment at his own stupidity. "Are you ever going to let that go?"

With a laugh that felt like a balm to his battered soul, Felicity laced her fingers through his. "Maybe… in a few years or so."

Oliver pressed another kiss to her temple as they walked, unable to stop himself from doing so now that he could.

"I like the sound of that."

_**To Be Continued...**_


	11. Chapter 11

**_A/N: Okay guys, here is the next chapter. Again, I'm sorry for the long wait but lately my motivation for writing has waned. I am now trying hard to avoid any kind of spoilers for the show and just enjoy what we're getting. Anyway, I really hope you enjoy this chapter, there will be two more after this and then that will be the end. Thanks for sticking with me this long :D_**

**_If you would like to follow me on Twitter for news of updates and little dialogue teases, please come on by and say hi. Loulou263_**

**And now, on with the story :D**

**_Chapter Eleven_**

Felicity knocked on the door to Alex's office and waited. In the past, she would've just knocked and strolled right in, but things were different now. She'd quit, left the company and almost the city. Now, three days after Oliver had found her at the airport, she was hoping Alex hadn't hired someone else yet.

"Come in."

Opening the door, she stuck her head inside. "Alex, do you have a minute?"

Alex's eyes widened as he stood up and walked over to the door, wrenching it open before drawing Felicity into a hug.

"You're back."

Felicity closed her eyes as she took a moment to enjoy the embrace. When she pulled back, Alex was grinning so wide she was afraid his face might actually split. "I never actually left."

"What? Explain."

Taking the seat that Alex gestured to, Felicity waited for him to sit before starting. He walked back around his desk and leaned back in his chair. "It's so good to see you, Smoak."

Felicity rolled her eyes, but couldn't help the grin that followed. "I've only been gone a few days, Alex."

"Yes, but I didn't know that you were coming back, so it felt like longer to me. Come on, details. Why are you here instead of some sun-kissed beach somewhere?"

She scoffed. "You thought that's where I was going? I wish."

Alex swayed from side to side in his chair, eyeing her carefully. "So what happened? I have to say, you don't look as upset as when I last saw you. Something's different."

Felicity smiled and waited for him to connect the dots. Alex knew her well, and when his eyes narrowed, she knew he'd done it.

"Oliver finally got his head out of his ass, huh?"

A bark of laughter escaped her at his choice of phrasing. Oliver might've taken his time, but she couldn't blame him. She was grateful that he'd even decided to give her another chance. But the past few days had been glorious. She'd spent most of her time with Oliver, locked in a bubble that she hadn't wanted to burst.

He took her to his favourite restaurant, showed her all the places he loved in the city, and she drank it all in. But her favourite part of the whole three days had been late at night, when they were lying in her bed facing each other. The deep conversations they'd had, the way he'd let her in, and told her all about his time on the island, that meant more to her than anything else.

"Hey, Felicity." She snapped back to attention and saw Alex staring at her with a smirk. "Well, that smile tells me all I need to know."

She chuckled. "I have no idea what you mean."

"Uh-huh," he deadpanned. "Listen, just promise me that you're being careful, Felicity. I don't want to see you get hurt again."

"You don't need to worry about me, Alex. I haven't been this happy in a long time."

Alex smiled at her, a warmth shining in his eyes that almost made her tear up. "I'm glad. If anyone deserves that, it's you. So, not that I'm not thrilled to see you, but I'm guessing you came here for something else?"

Felicity's smile faded as she looked down at her clasped hands. "Well, yeah. Actually, I was wondering if you might be willing to…"

Her heart dropped at his expression.

"I'm so sorry, Felicity. I already gave your position to someone else. He moved into your office this morning."

"Oh," she said, disappointment coursing through her. "That's… it's okay, Alex. I didn't expect a company this big to keep a job open for someone who'd quit. I just thought I'd try."

He looked genuinely upset about it, so Felicity tried her best to put on a smile. "Really, it's fine."

"No, it's not. You belong here, Felicity. This company would be stupid to let you go." He stood up and buttoned his suit jacket. "Listen, I will look into it and I'll let you know."

"You don't have to do that, you know."

As she stood up and crossed over to the door with him, he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, and winked. "You're the best I.T specialist I've ever had, Felicity. There's no way I won't do everything in my power to keep you here. Just give me a few days; I'll see what I can do."

Felicity felt unshed tears stinging her eyes, amazed at his loyalty to her. She reached up and kissed his cheek. "You're the best, Alex."

He patted her shoulder before opening the door. "And don't you forget it."

* * *

Oliver growled in frustration at the computer monitor in the Foundry. Nothing was going his way today, and now he couldn't even access the system to try to track his latest target. He appreciated all the work Felicity had put into upgrading his servers, but today, it was working against him.

As he closed the program to open a different one, he heard the alley-entrance door slam shut. The clicking of heels told him who it was, and though he was frustrated, he couldn't help the smile that bloomed when he saw her appear.

"Hi," she said, leaning down to give him a quick kiss. Before she could straighten back up, he grabbed her hand and pulled her into his lap.

Delighting in her surprised squeal, he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her again, this time a little deeper. He just couldn't get enough of her, and he hoped that it would always be that way.

"Wow," she said, a little breathlessly, against his lips. "That was one hell of a welcome."

"I missed you."

"You saw me two hours ago."

"That was two hours ago."

Pulling back slightly, she gazed down at him while her fingers toyed with the hair at the nape of his neck. A shudder ran through him, and he hissed as she shifted in his lap, creating a delicious friction. Judging from the way her eyes twinkled mischievously, she knew what she was doing.

_Well, two can play that game,_ he thought. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he let one slide down to cup her backside, and a little gasp escaped her as he squeezed, his intention obvious.

They hadn't yet made love, even though he'd spent the past three nights at her apartment. He wanted to, oh, he _really _wanted to. So much so, that it was all he could think about sometimes. She really had no idea of the effect she had on him. But this thing with Felicity… it was different. He didn't want to screw it up by rushing things. He wanted to take his time with her, to connect with her on a level that transcended the physical.

Lying in bed with her each night had been the best kind of torture, with him trying, and failing, to keep his hands off her. But he wanted to learn everything about her first. He wasn't a fool; he knew that his time on the island had turned him into a different person. A person that didn't deserve her because she was pure and he was… well, not.

But none of that seemed to matter to her; she'd taken everything he'd told her in stride. When she looked at him, at his scars, he didn't see pity or repulsion, he only saw love. And it strengthened his resolve to be the best version of himself that he could be… for her. He wanted to be the person he saw through her eyes.

"Oliver," she whispered, bringing him out of his thoughts. He realised that both of his hands were now cupping her butt, and one of her hands had somehow found its way into his shirt and was currently stroking over his chest.

Reluctantly, he smoothed his hands up and over her hip, drawing in a deep breath as she sat up straight. "My mother called."

Felicity blinked in surprise. "Uh… that was quite a huge subject change."

Yeah, where had _that _come from? Shaking his head, he chuckled. "Sorry. But yeah, she uh… she wanted to know if we would be available for dinner tomorrow night?"

"Oh." For a split second, he saw something in her eyes, before she quickly masked it. He knew that look, and he didn't like it. It was the look that said she was still afraid to face his family. That she still felt inadequate.

"Hey, you don't have anything to worry about, Felicity. My family loves you."

Pressing her lips together, she moved to stand up, but he stopped her by tightening his arms around her waist. "Talk to me."

She shook her head. "It's nothing. You… _we_ should go; I have been a little selfish with you these past few days. You have to go home at some point for more than a change of clothes."

She bit down on her bottom lip, her nerves shining through her eyes, and Oliver couldn't bear the idea that she thought she wasn't good enough. He smoothed his thumb along her lip, easing it from between her teeth.

"Felicity, my family doesn't hold any resentment towards you. You know that."

"I know, but you telling me that and me actually sitting in a room with them all, are two very different things, Oliver. What I did-"

"What you did," he interrupted. "Doesn't matter anymore. In fact, I think it might've actually helped."

Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Explain that sentence."

"Well, Diggle was right. Don't tell him I said that, by the way. But I think that all of this, it helped heal my family. It brought them closer together. Tommy has been visiting more and I haven't seen my mom this happy in years."

Felicity leaned her forehead against his, slowly exhaling through her nose. "I just… I don't want them to hate me."

Cupping the back of her neck, he leaned in and pressed his lips to hers, the kiss slow and sweet. How could she even think something like that? He placed a gentle kiss on the end of her nose, making her chuckle. "I don't even think that's possible, honey."

Her smile grew wide at the term of endearment and he made a mental note to say it more often. "So… what do you say? Dinner tomorrow night? I know Thea is eager to see you again."

This time, she didn't hesitate. "Yes, I would love to have dinner with your family. Is Tommy going to be there, too?"

"As far as I know, yes."

She nodded. "So… it'll be the whole family then. No pressure, huh?"

He tilted his head and winked at her. "None whatsoever. You don't have to go if you really don't want to. But you're a part of my life now, Felicity. I want you to feel comfortable around them."

She placed a hand against his cheek, her thumb gently rubbing back and forth, and he leaned into her touch. "As long as you're there, I'll be fine."

"Well, if you don't mind taking on the maze again, I might even show you my room, too."

She laughed and pecked him on the lips. "I'll make sure to bring some breadcrumbs."

His mind flashed back to the first time he'd met her, when she'd been sneaking out of the mansion but had gotten lost. Although he'd been suspicious of her at the time, he had noticed how adorable she'd been trying to find her way out of the house. If someone had told him then, just how important she would become to him, he would've laughed in their face.

"So, want to tell me what was bothering you when I walked in earlier?"

He tilted his head, giving her an innocent look. "Only if you tell me how your meeting with Alex went."

Her eyes drifted down to where her hand was stroking over his chest. "That didn't go as well as I'd hoped. My job isn't open anymore."

He frowned. "Really? That was fast."

"Well, QC isn't known for waiting around, Oliver. It's fine, I'll find something else."

His hand ghosted over the silky skin of her thigh beneath her dress, eliciting a tiny little shiver that Oliver filed away for future reference. "You know, I could just-"

"Don't finish that sentence, Queen. I don't need you to fight my battles for me."

"I wasn't going to, but-"

"No buts," she said with a wink. "I'm a genius remember? I'll figure something out. And hey, at least I still have my apartment."

Oliver snorted. "Well, Cooper's got such a crush on you, I wouldn't have been surprised if he'd turned it into a Felicity museum."

Felicity smacked his arm. "Hey, be nice. Cooper's not that bad. He has his quirks but he's always looked out for me."

Holding his hands up in surrender, Oliver laughed. "Fine, I won't do anything."

"Thank you. Now, your turn."

Oliver dropped his head back onto the chair with a long sigh. "I'm trying to find someone, but he, apparently, has disappeared."

Felicity sat up straight, all playfulness now gone from her expression. "Who is it?"

"Dylan Sanders. He owns a lot of property in the Glades. He rents the apartments out cheap so nobody asks any questions, but he's been using it as a front for his drug trade. Plus, I suspect, a few other things. Four people have died in the last week and a half, and I need to find him and shut down his distribution before that happens again."

Felicity abruptly turned in his lap, dragging the keyboard closer to her. He sucked in a breath as she twisted; trying to ignore the heat she ignited. He watched as she began typing furiously, her fingers practically a blur as they moved.

"What are you doing?" he asked, reaching up to stroke her back. Her attention was solely focused on the monitor but he felt the way her muscles tensed under his touch.

"Tracking Sanders."

"You found him?"

She flicked a glance back at him and smiled. "I may have 'borrowed' a facial recognition program from somewhere."

"Where?"

"The F.B.I."

She said it so matter-of-factly that Oliver knew it wasn't the first time she'd done it. "You hacked into the F.B.I? Seriously?"

Without taking her gaze off the monitor, she frowned. "That sounds a little too much like judgement."

"No, just pride." Seriously, was there anything this woman couldn't do?

Instead of answering, Felicity simply leaned back and kissed him, then returned to her work. Within five minutes, she was grinning. "He's in a warehouse. If you hurry, you might be able to catch him before he leaves."

As she pointed at the location on a map, Oliver sat there dumbfounded. "How did you even do that? I've been trying to-"

"Oliver, honey," she interrupted, pressing a finger to his lips. "This is what I do. Now, do you want me to go through it with you step by step, or do you want to go catch this guy?"

* * *

Half an hour later, Felicity was on edge. She was still in the Foundry, still glued to the computer monitors, watching closely as Oliver and Diggle infiltrated the warehouse via the rooftop. How did he do this every night? How could he go out and face such danger with only Diggle at his side? She'd been watching him the whole time and she felt as if her heart was firmly lodged in her throat.

"There's no sign of Sanders." Felicity jumped as Oliver's voice came through the earpiece. He was currently perched on a rafter in the roof, Diggle alongside him. "No crew on the ground either."

She immediately jumped into action, accessing the nearby security cameras surrounding the warehouse. "I don't see him."

"Dammit."

"Uh… Arrow?"

"What is it?"

"I don't see anything."

"You lost visual?" Diggle asked.

"No, I mean I don't _see _anything. There's no one around. You would think that a warehouse holding illegal drugs would have at least some security, right? I mean, not that I know a lot about these things but isn't it bad business to leave the place unattended?"

She had a bad feeling about this. Something wasn't right.

"Hang on a second," Oliver said, his voice tight but controlled, before he went completely silent.

Felicity waited, listening to his movements as she chewed on her bottom lip. If this was what it was like to be involved in his missions, she didn't know if her heart could take it. And he wasn't even in any real danger at that moment.

"Shit," Diggle swore softly. "Crates are empty."

"Guys, you've got company." Felicity watched, tension coiling in her gut as six armed men surrounded the two main exits of the warehouse. But instead of entering the building, they just stood there.

"Where?" Oliver asked.

"They're outside but they're just…"

"What?"

She gasped. "They're barricading the doors. You need to get out of there, right now!"

"Should've known it was a trap." Diggle muttered.

Felicity pressed her fingers against her earpiece, as if that would somehow make what was happening clearer to her. She listened intently as Oliver nocked an arrow, heard the thwick of the string as he released it, and then the subsequent boom as one of the doors exploded outwards, taking the guards down with it.

She almost cried in relief when Oliver and Diggle appeared just outside the doorway.

"It's alright, we're-"

Loud static blasted into her ear, making her yank the com out so fast she almost took her ear with it. When she looked back at the monitor, she saw the entire warehouse crumbling in on itself in a blaze of fire. She looked around for her men, but the blast had taken out the surrounding cameras.

"No! No, no, no!" Frantically she typed; accessing cameras from further away, but there was no sign of them. The three men who had been guarding the other door ran off in the direction of the docks, clearly happy to leave their fallen colleagues behind them. Whatever, she didn't care about them. All she cared about was finding the man she loved and the man who'd become a great friend to her.

Grabbing her com, she carefully raised it to her ear. The static had died down a little now, so all she could hear was the roaring of the flames. "Arrow?"

Nothing. Dammit, where the hell were they?

"Oliver! Diggle!"

Her earpiece crackled before Oliver's voice came through. "Hey, we're okay."

"Oliver?" she cried.

"I'm fine, honey." That word broke her. She slumped back into her chair and pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes, forcing the tears to stay away. They weren't out of danger yet, she needed to focus, and she couldn't lose it like this every time he might get hurt.

Oliver coughed, bringing her attention back to him. "So… Arrow?"

She could almost hear the smile in his voice. "Uh yeah, well I didn't think it was a good idea to use your real name. Apparently, that point is moot now. Just… come home, please."

His reply was quiet, as if it was for her ears alone. "I'm on my way."

By the time Felicity heard their footsteps thundering down the metal stairs, she was beside herself. She'd heard the pain in Oliver's voice, the hurt that he'd tried to conceal from her. And now, her mind had conjured up so many images of how he could be hurt that she couldn't think straight.

As soon as he was in her line of sight, she launched herself out of her chair and straight into his arms.

"Whoa," Oliver grunted, his hands automatically settling on her hips to hold her steady. "It's okay, Felicity. I'm fine."

She pulled back just far enough to check him over, her eyes narrowing as she assessed him. He had a few scrapes and bruises on his face but her gaze zeroed in on the cut above his eyebrow. It was about half an inch long and still bleeding.

"You're hurt," she said quietly, tracing her fingers over his jawline.

He reached up and captured her hand in his. "I've had worse, honey."

"It's true," Diggle said from behind Oliver. Felicity assessed him too, but he appeared to be uninjured. "He's definitely had worse. At least this one doesn't require stitches."

Felicity shook her head and grabbed Oliver's hand. After dragging him over to the med table, she pushed him to sit on it and then gathered some supplies from the drawers next to it.

"Felicity-"

"Don't, Oliver." Her tone was sharper than she'd intended and she didn't miss the way his brows furrowed in confusion. "Just let me clean this, please."

She didn't know why she was feeling so angry. It wasn't necessarily directed at Oliver, but she could feel it coiling deep in the pit of her stomach. The same thought kept repeating itself over and over in her mind. _I could've lost him tonight._

As she moved back to stand in front of him, he reached out and captured her face in his hands, forcing her to look at him. "Felicity, I am okay, I promise. I know that you're not used to this, and I'm sorry that you had to see it. But… this is what I do. It's who I am."

Forcing herself to take a deep breath, Felicity let her hands rest on his thighs. "I know that, I do. I just don't like seeing you hurt."

She rested a palm over his chest, on top of the green leather that hid an abundance of scars from his past. He'd been through so much pain. But he was right, this mission was clearly something he needed to do. She didn't know why, but she knew that it was important to him.

He pressed a kiss to her forehead, and slowly, the anger swirling inside her, melted away. "It doesn't hurt anymore."

She nodded, covering his hands with hers for a second before she stepped back. Turning her attention to Diggle, she tried to smile. "Are you okay? Sorry I didn't ask before."

He chuckled as he grabbed his jacket off the back of a nearby chair. "I'm good. Barely a scratch on me, Oliver pushed me out of the way. Listen, I'm gonna head home to my wife. I'll leave him in your capable hands."

She nodded and smiled when Diggle threw her a wink before heading up the stairs.

"I didn't mean to scare you, Felicity."

She huffed out a laugh as she returned to her stash of supplies that she'd placed on the table next to his leg. "I know. Now, let's get you cleaned up so we can go home."

"I can do it, if you-"

"No. I want to do it." She raised her head, gaze locking onto his before placing a quick kiss on his lips. "I need to."

* * *

"Take off your clothes," Felicity demanded as soon as they entered her apartment.

Oliver paused in the doorway, his mouth curving up into a seductive smile. "Take off _yours_ first."

Felicity's cheeks flushed and honestly, it was the most adorable thing he'd ever seen.

"You need a shower, and then I'm taking you straight to bed." She winced. "That came out wrong. I just… you need sleep is all I'm saying."

Oliver let out a breath of relief at her ramble. His Felicity was back. Her earlier reaction had concerned him, making him wonder if she would ever be able to handle what he did with his nights. If she couldn't, what would that mean for them as a couple? He didn't want to think about that, but the nagging voice in his head wouldn't shut up.

"A shower sounds great," he replied. If she needed his reassurance and compliance, he would give it to her willingly. "But only if you join me."

She raised an eyebrow at him when he grinned, and he could see that she was fighting back her own smile.

"I mean…" his gaze dropped to her lips as he moved closer to her. "I could really use some help. I've had a rough night, after all."

She smacked his shoulder. "That is despicable! You're seriously going to use tonight as an excuse to get me naked?"

He laughed, wrapping his arms around her waist, and pulling her in close. "Do I really need an excuse? I always want you naked."

"Well, that goes both ways," she blurted. Again, that rosy blush appeared, and it was indeed a delight to witness. Something about this woman called out to the deepest parts of his soul, soothing him in ways that he'd never felt before.

As he stared down into her eyes, his smile faded, along with hers. Holding her tightly in his arms just felt so right. All the nagging, persistent thoughts that she was too good for him, that she might get hurt because of him, suddenly stopped, and it left a feeling of freedom that was intoxicating.

He tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, releasing a deep breath as he lowered his forehead to hers. "I love you."

She flattened her palms against his chest, her fingers scratching over his brown leather jacket. "I love you, too."

Those words would never cease to amaze him. He hadn't thought himself worthy of them, but looking into her eyes told him that she meant every word. He could _see_ the love radiating out from them and for the first time in so long, he could see that maybe he was worthy after all.

Tilting his head, he lowered his mouth to hers, their lips meeting with the barest of touches. He wanted to do more, but she'd been right about him needing a shower. He was covered in grime and dust from the explosion.

Reluctantly, he pulled back, smiling as he reached out to wipe a smudge of dust off her cheek. "I'm going to take that shower now."

"Alone?" she asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

He chuckled and placed a quick kiss on her forehead. "I think it's wise. If you get in there with me, I don't think we'll ever come out."

She pouted as he stepped around her, heading towards the bathroom. Closing the door behind him, he leaned against the sink for a moment to collect his thoughts. He'd almost died tonight. While that wasn't a new thing for him, seeing Felicity's reaction to it had hit him harder than he'd thought.

It was strange to have someone be that terrified for _him._ He'd faced so many situations where his life had been on the line, and no one had been there to care whether or not he made it out alive. But now, with his family and Diggle, he realised how lucky he was. With Felicity, however, he knew that somehow, no matter what he'd done in his past, he'd been blessed.

He felt a smile tugging at his lips as he slowly undressed and stepped into the shower. The water was gloriously hot, massaging away the aches in his muscles, and although it felt good, he didn't linger. Grabbing a bar of soap from a nearby dish, he quickly washed his body and hair, and then turned the water off.

After stepping out and wrapping a towel around his waist, he opened the cabinet above the sink to see if Felicity had any medical supplies. She didn't, but everything on the shelves- from the contact lens case to a lone tube of lipstick lying on its side- screamed Felicity. For some reason, just the sight of that made him insanely happy.

Eager to get back to his girl, Oliver dried himself off and threw his dirty clothes into the hamper next to the door. Still wearing nothing but a towel around his waist, he left the bathroom in search of Felicity.

She was standing in the kitchen nursing a cup of coffee between her hands, and since she was currently staring into thin air, he knew she hadn't heard him come in. He cleared his throat, startling her slightly, but when her eyes landed on him, he froze.

Her gaze travelled the entire length of his body, her tongue peeking out to wet her lips, and Oliver had never seen anything more erotic. As she placed her cup on the counter behind her and began walking towards him, he felt himself stir at the sway of her hips. One glance at the barely hidden smirk on her face told him she knew exactly what she was doing.

But when she came to a stop directly in front of him, he was surprised to see sadness in her eyes. Without speaking, she raised a hand and touched the new bruises along the right side of his ribcage. He sucked in a sharp breath at her feather light touch. Shivered at the way her delicate fingers traced over his sensitive skin.

Oliver wanted to erase the concerned frown on her face, but he didn't dare to move in case she stopped what she was doing. Her touch was everything he'd been craving for so long. It wasn't a large bruise, not by his usual standards anyway, but the angry purple colour made it look worse than it was.

He hadn't realised he was holding his breath until she raised her eyes to his, and the depth of emotion he saw there shook him. Both her hands came up to rest on his chest, and the warmth from her palms seeped into his skin.

His hands twitched by his sides, wanting so badly to touch her, but he sensed that this moment was more for her than for him. Again, that nagging thought that maybe she wouldn't be able to handle this flew through his mind. But that thought was silenced when she smoothed her palms up and over his shoulders, leaving a trail of goose bumps behind. Her eyes never left his as she cupped the back of his neck, placing gentle pressure there to bring his head down.

As their lips met, Oliver's patience snapped, and he grabbed onto her hips, pulling her tightly against his body. He swallowed her little gasp as he thrust his fingers into her hair, tilting her head so that he could deepen the kiss. Needing to feel more, he slid his hand down one creamy thigh and gripped the back of her knee, bringing it up to the side of his waist.

What was it about this woman that drove him so crazy? She was barely touching him and yet he felt as if his skin was the only thing keeping him together. He'd never felt anything like it, which astounded him on so many levels.

A low moan emerged from deep within Felicity as she lightly scratched his jaw, before moving up to run her fingers though his wet hair.

"Felicity," he whispered against her mouth. He didn't want to break the connection, but he needed to make sure that they weren't moving too fast for her.

However, when she gazed up at him with eyes so hazy and dark he forgot what he was going to say.

She patted his face and smiled. "Oliver, it's okay."

How could she read him so easily? "Are you sure?"

She chuckled. "I want this, I want _you_."

With a low growl, Oliver grabbed her butt, hoisted her into his arms, and slowly made his way to her bedroom. As he lowered her gently to the bed, he braced himself on his elbows and took a moment to really look at her. He wanted to remember this moment for the rest of his life.

He ran a finger down the straight line of her nose to where it tilted up slightly at the end. "Cute nose." And he dropped a kiss there too. Then he moved his palm down to cup her jaw, tracing the outline of her lips, feeling it right down to his groin when they parted on a whimper. Her breath was warm against the pad of his thumb, the beat of her pulse wild beneath his palm, and her throat moved convulsively as she swallowed. Each sweep intensified his longing but he held back, wanting to preserve the moment. Because he knew when he kissed her, really kissed her, there would be no holding back.

Her impatience grew obvious as she took matters into her own hands, dragging his face down to hers, closing the maddening distance. He inhaled as their lips met and her scent surrounded him. It was like rocket fuel flooding his already charged bloodstream.

Oliver exploded.

He ground his hips against hers as he reached for the little zipper on the side of her dress, relishing her shivers as his fingers brushed against every inch of skin he exposed. He needed more, unable to get enough of her. Reluctantly, he pushed himself up and sat back on his heels, reaching to grasp her hands before pulling her up with him.

After quickly ridding her of her dress, he surged forward, his lips eager to explore all the soft, sweet places of her neck and below.

"Oliver!" she gasped, when he hit a particularly sensitive spot just above her collarbone. She thrust her hips up against him, making him groan at the friction, before her hands made quick work of the knot in his towel and threw it across the room.

"I need you," she whispered in his ear, moving lower to kiss her way down his neck.

Oliver groaned, unsure how much more of this delicious torture he could take. Hooking his fingers into the waistband of her panties, he gently tugged them down her legs and off. When she pulled him back down and wrapped her legs around his waist, he could feel his control unravelling. It made him harder and hotter, and hungrier than he'd ever been.

And then Felicity cupped his face, kissing him hard, drawing him deep inside where they both needed him to be. There were no more words, no more thoughts. Just moans and licks, and gasps, and whimpers. Holding on tight as their bodies moved to a rhythm uniquely theirs. Building and building until they could no longer hold back, both shattering in each other's embrace.

Oliver gazed down at her, his breathing hard and fast, noting with pride that Felicity's was the same. "I love you so much, Felicity. You know that, right?"

She squeezed her eyes shut, but he frowned when he saw a tear escape and roll down her cheek. He tried to pull back a little but she stopped him by tightening her thighs around his waist. He sucked in a breath when she clenched around him, wanting him to stay right where he was. "Hey, what's wrong?"

She shook her head and let out a watery chuckle. "Nothing. Absolutely nothing is wrong."

"Then why are you crying?" he asked softly.

"Because I just… I love you too, Oliver. I've been alone for a long time, and I never thought that I would get to have… _this."_

He understood that more than she would ever know, but it hurt him to think of her being lonely. He brushed a tear away with his thumb and pressed a slow, tender kiss to her lips. "I'm not going anywhere, Felicity."

He shifted to lie on his back, dragging her with him, and she draped an arm over his chest. One leg came up to rest over his as she stroked a soothing pattern into his chest. "I got so scared tonight, Oliver. I mean, I know this thing with us is new, but I can't… I can't lose you."

"Felicity," he whispered, pressing on her hip to bring her closer to his body. "You're not gonna lose me."

Her eyes slowly started drifting shut, exhaustion creeping in. She smiled as she burrowed her face into the hollow of his neck, breathing him in deeply. "Promise?"

Oliver was grateful when he heard her breathing even out as she fell asleep, before he could answer. He couldn't promise her that, not with what he did at night. And he never ever wanted to lie to her. For so long he had lived with the expectation of death, that something was always just waiting around the corner for him. That today could be his last. It was a hard thing to turn off.

But he had Felicity now. Could he allow himself to actually dream of a future? One that didn't involve life and death situations? A future where he could be happy. He wasn't sure; he knew he couldn't abandon his mission. But he also knew that he could never walk away from the woman he loved.

So no, he couldn't promise her that she wouldn't lose him, not when anything could happen to him. But as he tightened his arms around her, he knew that he would try, with every fibre of his being, to come home to her.

_**To Be Continued...**_


	12. Chapter 12

**_Chapter Twelve_**

The sky was just starting to lighten when Oliver woke early the next morning. Turning over onto his side, he glanced at Felicity. She was lying on her stomach with her head turned away, and one thigh stuck out from the sheet that barely covered her backside.

His lazy gaze followed the long stretch of skin from where the sheet ended to the graceful dip forming the small of her back. It trailed up the gentle rise of her ribcage to the flat expanse of her shoulder blades, and his hand itched to reach out and touch her.

It would be so easy to run his palm up the contours of her back, but he stopped himself, content to just watch her sleep for a few more minutes. It was so… domestic. Something he'd never imagined having in his life. Even before the island.

Last night had been the best night of his life, a night where he and Felicity had connected on a level that had astounded him. Images of her lying naked beneath him, her face contorted in the throes of passion as he lost himself in her, flashed through his mind. She'd given him everything, and he gave her everything he had in return.

Unable to contain the itch any longer, he leaned up on his elbow and dropped a lingering kiss onto her shoulder as his palm moved across her lower back. Her skin was warm and soft beneath his lips, and her scent filled his head as he inhaled deeply. It was a heady mixture of her peach shower gel and something that was uniquely _Felicity. _

He let his fingers wander up to the back of her neck, smiling when a little shudder ran through her. Slowly, her chest rose and fell on a deep sigh, as she turned her head to face him.

"Good morning," he mumbled, moving in to kiss her.

"Hmm, morning." She twisted onto her side so that they were lying face to face, and stroked a hand down his cheek. "Oliver… we need to have a serious discussion."

His smile faded as his hand froze on her hip. Did she regret last night? Was she now having second thoughts about them?

He cleared his throat. "What about?"

Her eyes twinkled even as she tried to glare at him. "It's six-thirty in the morning. Why are you awake?"

Relief hit him square in the chest. He wasn't sure what he'd expected her to say, but it hadn't been that. He let out a small chuckle and kissed the tip of her nose. "Not much of a morning person, huh?"

She covered her mouth as she yawned. "That depends on your definition of morning. Oh God, you're one of those early-bird types aren't you?"

His gaze followed the path his hand was currently taking up and down her arm. "Is that a deal breaker?"

She pretended to think about it for a second, and then grinned. "I guess I'll just have to get used to it."

He raised a brow. "Planning on having me in your bed a lot?"

She shifted closer to him, one hand resting under her pillow as the other lightly scratched at the stubble on his jaw. She seemed to like doing that, he realised. "After last night, you're lucky if I let you leave it at all."

"Oh, really?" he asked playfully, wrapping his arm around her back and pressing her closer to his body. "Not that I would complain, of course."

That adorable blush returned, starting on her chest and rising all the way up to her cheeks. "Well, I mean, I guess there are worse ways to be woken up in the morning."

His laughter faded as he stared into her eyes. She was so beautiful with her messy hair and sleepy gaze. He smoothed some of the hair away from her face, letting his finger graze down her cheek before he leaned in and captured her lips with his.

She hummed as she kissed him back, her hand coming up to cup the back of his head.

As her lips began to move down his jawline, Oliver sighed contentedly. He never wanted to leave this bed, this room, this apartment. He wanted to stay with her for as long as he possibly could. Ignore the outside world and focus on her.

"Hmm," she mumbled against his neck. "You smell so good."

"So do you," he whispered, shivering slightly when her breath tickled his ear. "Like peaches."

Surprised laughter erupted from her as he gently bit down on the pulse point in her neck. "I love peaches."

"Good to know," she replied, still laughing.

With a small groan, Oliver leaned back on his elbow, propping his chin up with his hand as he gazed down at her. "Speaking of food, are you still okay with going to dinner tonight?"

Her smile faded a little, a wariness appearing in her eyes that he didn't like. Did she still feel as if she wasn't good enough for his family? She couldn't be more wrong.

"Yes, I'm uh… I'm looking forward to it."

"You're a terrible liar, Felicity Smoak."

One perfectly shaped eyebrow rose in challenge. "Oh, and I suppose spilling a latte on a bullet ridden laptop was a well thought out story?"

"I…" he paused, his mouth snapping shut. "Fair point."

Turning serious, she stared into his eyes. "I'm not lying though. I do love your family, Oliver. Though whether or not that feeling is mutual remains to be seen."

He studied her features for a moment, trying to figure out why she thought his family hated her when he'd already told her they didn't. He had a feeling that not all of it was because of the way she'd entered their lives. No, it went deeper than that.

He remembered that her father had died when she was six and she never saw her mother. He wondered why they'd drifted so far apart. What could've happened that was so bad that she never spoke to her own mother? She'd never really gone into much detail, except to say that they didn't get along. The little laugh that she'd hidden behind was nothing but a mask to hide the pain lying just beneath the surface. Her eyes told him it was a pain she'd been feeling for years now. But he didn't know how to get her to talk about it. He wanted to help, he just didn't know how.

"Want to know what I think?" he asked, stroking her cheek.

"Hmm?"

"I think that you should forget about everything that happened. And I do mean _everything_. Trust me, honey; they're not holding any grudges. Just go there, enjoy their company, and have fun. I saw how much you and Thea bonded when you came over for dinner before."

Her eyes practically shined at the mention of his sister. "Well that's because Thea's awesome. We did get along really well."

"See? There you go. I promise that it won't be nearly as bad as you've built it up in your head."

"I guess," she murmured with a shrug. "Just promise me one thing."

Oliver laid his head back down on his pillow but moved closer so that their faces were barely inches apart. "Anything."

"Don't leave me alone tonight. I mean, I know that you're… busy, but just for tonight-"

"Felicity," he interrupted, leaning forward to peck her on the lips. "I promise that tonight, you have my undivided attention and support. But you really have nothing to worry about."

Her fingers grazed down his jaw. "Thank you."

"Hmm," he mumbled against her lips, "I should get going."

"Why?"

"I have a lot of stuff to do at the club. I've been kind of neglecting it for the past couple of days."

"It's still early. The club hasn't even been closed that long."

Oliver chuckled. "I need to show my face at home before I go into work."

Felicity sighed dramatically as she went back to rubbing her palm up and down his arm. "Okay, so I'll meet you at the club in an hour or so?"

Oliver frowned. "What…?"

"Well I know you have to work so it's the perfect time for me to install the last of those programs on your… underground setup. Not that I have anything to do anyway, being unemployed will do that- why are you looking at me like that?"

Oliver blinked and tried to erase the grin that he could feel pulling at his cheeks, but he couldn't. He just felt so… relieved. After last night, he'd been so worried that she would pull away from him, or at least from that part of his life. "You still want to help me?"

She looked puzzled, as if she couldn't understand why he was even questioning it. "Of course. Why wouldn't I?"

"I don't know, I just…"

"Hey, what is it?"

As his eyes locked onto hers he could see the love shining there. But more than that, he could see the belief that she had in him, and honestly, it rocked him a little. No one had ever looked at him like that before. And it left him feeling a little exposed, but ultimately… so very loved.

"Oliver," she whispered, linking her fingers through his. "Talk to me."

Releasing a shaky breath, he closed his eyes. "I just… I was worried that after what happened last night, you would, I mean I didn't know if…"

"Honey, talking in sentence fragments is my thing, remember?"

A burst of laughter erupted from deep within his chest.

"But I get it, you were worried that I can't handle what you do. That it might, somehow, affect our relationship."

"I know that you can handle it, that's not what I meant. I just didn't know if it would be too much. My life is not an easy life, I know that. I'm not an easy man to love."

Her frown deepened as she raised herself up onto her elbow. "That's where you're _so_ wrong, Oliver."

"What do you mean?"

Felicity took a moment to collect her thoughts, and Oliver used that time to really look at her. Her hair fell around her face in a mass of blonde waves, giving her a subtle golden glow. This woman had snuck past his defences and firmly lodged herself in his heart, and there was no getting her out. Not that he would ever want to.

She pressed her lips together, and he was shocked to see her eyes tear up. "Oliver, whatever you went through on that island, whatever you had to do to survive… even though it breaks my heart to think of you going through that, you know that I am _always_ here for you. Right?"

He nodded, threading his fingers through the hair at the base of her skull. "I know that, honey."

"And you know that I will always support you. Yes, having to watch you suit up and go out every night terrifies me, but it's important to you. So it's important to me, too. I will stand by you, no matter what."

How did she do that? How did she know exactly what to say to calm his fears? Her presence alone was a balm that soothed his tortured soul, and he wasn't surprised to find that he could no longer envision a future without her in it.

Her soft hands cradled his face with such tenderness that it made his heart ache. "Your life is not an easy life, you're right. But you're wrong about the other thing."

She lowered her head, pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead before pulling back to stare into his eyes. "Loving you is the easiest thing I've ever done, or ever will do. Never doubt that, okay?"

When he didn't respond, she smoothed her thumbs over his cheeks. "Okay?"

Swallowing hard, he managed to nod, too overwhelmed by his emotions to answer. He had never, in his entire life, met anyone like her.

She winked and snuggled back down into her pillow. "Besides, with me helping you, you stand a better chance of coming home to me each night."

Oliver smiled, his chest feeling lighter for the first time in years. "You're not wrong there."

He'd been afraid to put a label on what he had with Felicity, for fear of losing it too quickly. In his line of work, or even just his life, it was too easy for things to slip through his grasp. But as he stared down at the woman he loved, with her smile lighting up the darkest parts of him, he knew that she was it. She was the one for him.

It didn't matter how she'd come into his life. He was just so very grateful that she had. No matter what his future held, he was sure that Felicity would always be a part of it.

* * *

It was almost lunchtime by the time Felicity sat back in her chair in the Foundry. Surveying her work, she smiled proudly. It was a setup that any self-respecting vigilante needed, and secretly, she hoped that Oliver was as pleased with it as she was.

Stroking the arms of the chair she sat in, Felicity glanced around. Sure, it was cold and dark down there, but there was a certain charm to the place. It was something that was just so… Oliver.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Felicity smiled at the sound of Tommy's voice behind her, spinning her chair around to face him. "What, a billionaire can't afford more than a penny?"

His eyebrows rose in amusement as he pulled up a chair and sat down in front of her. "Depends on if the thoughts are dirty or not. Were they dirty?"

She threw him a wink and shrugged. "Maybe, but you'll never find out."

He sighed dramatically, holding a white paper bag out towards her. "Fine. I come bearing gifts."

"What's this?" she asked, but as soon as she opened the bag, a delicious smell assaulted her nose. "Oh! You just became my favourite person!"

"Hold that thought," he said, getting up. "I'm just gonna go tell Oliver you chose the right brother after all."

"You'll do no such thing!" she gasped, feigning a horrified expression.

That earned her a beautiful laugh from Tommy as he sat back down. "Well if I'd known a cheeseburger is all it would take, I would've done it a long time ago."

Her stomach grumbled as she dove into the bag, pulling out the burger and a portion of curly fries. "Not that I'm not grateful but… are you like a mind-reader or something?"

"Now that would be a handy skill to have with the ladies," he chuckled. "But no. I came by to see Oliver but he's busy upstairs. He mentioned you'd been down here since breakfast so…"

Felicity glanced up as he fell silent, his face flushed slightly as if embarrassed. "That's very sweet of you, Tommy. Thank you."

She sensed that there was more to it than he was letting on, but she didn't want to push.

"Well, that's not all. I have something else for you."

"Oh?" she asked around a mouthful of burger.

Bracing his elbows on his knees, he leaned forward. "Alex informed me that he gave your position at QC away."

"Oh, well yeah but it's okay. I mean, I did quit."

Tommy shook his head. "From what he tells me, you're a great asset to the company and I'd be a fool to let you go that easily."

Felicity's eyes dropped to her burger, feeling a strange mixture of pride and embarrassment swirling through her. "Alex is a good friend."

"I got that impression, yes. So… I looked at your file. I hope you don't mind."

She smiled. "Well, you are my boss. Or were… so no, I don't mind. But why?"

Tommy sat back, resting his hands behind his head. "Did you ever consider working in the applied sciences division? I mean, someone with your qualifications could practically run that place. So I guess I was just curious, why the I.T department?"

Placing her burger back down on its paper in her lap, she took out a napkin and wiped her fingers before adjusting her glasses. "Well, when I first came to work at your company the A.S division didn't exist yet. And by the time it opened, I was… comfortable, I guess, in the technical division. Why do you ask?"

"Hmm?" he said, his eyes snapping to hers. "Oh, well, turns out, I'm in need of someone in applied sciences. And you seem to fit the bill quite well. So what do you say?"

Felicity frowned. Was he offering her a job because she was qualified? Or because he felt that he owed it to her? "You want me to work in the A.S division?"

"No, I want you to run it."

Felicity blinked, convinced that she'd heard him wrong. "Say that again?"

Tommy's eyes sparkled as he chuckled. "The current manager of the division is stepping down. He's retiring at the end of the month and I need someone that I know can do the job."

"How do you know I can do it? I've never done it before."

"Felicity, we both know you can do it. That's not the issue here. Though I have to say I'm a little confused. I thought you'd jump at the chance."

Placing her burger on her desk, Felicity stood up and began pacing. "I'm just a little… I mean this is a big opportunity here."

Tommy watched her back and forth, his eyes following her every move with amusement. "I know, that's why I'm offering it to you."

Pinning him with her gaze, she stepped closer. "Is this a real job offer, Tommy?"

His forehead creased into a frown. "What else would it be?"

"So you're not offering because I'm dating your brother? It's not out of some familial obligation?"

"Nepotism was never my thing." He placed his hand over his heart. "I swear that my motivation is purely selfish from a C.E.O perspective. I need the best, and Felicity, you are the most qualified candidate I've seen in a long time."

Warmth and excitement bloomed to life in her chest. "Then… I accept."

Tommy stood and held out a hand for her to shake. His grip was firm yet gentle, and the enthusiasm radiating from him was contagious, making her grin even wider. "Then I'm glad. Welcome back to Queen Consolidated, Miss Smoak."

The official tone would've been more convincing if he could actually manage to be serious for more than a second. But Felicity knew that it was just who he was. Tommy Merlyn had never been a guy who took things too seriously.

"There is one thing we need to address though," he said, sitting back in his chair, gesturing for her to do the same.

"What's that?"

"Is your crush on your boss going to be a problem?"

Felicity narrowed her eyes at him as he laughed. "Well, since Oliver isn't going to be my boss, I don't think that's going to be an issue."

He clutched his chest with both hands. "Ouch! You wound me, Smoak."

"For the record, I didn't have a crush on you."

Her attempt to save face crashed and burned when Tommy winked at her. "It's okay, Felicity. Many a woman has been burdened with the same affliction. It's really not your fault."

Unable to withstand the heat rising up her face any longer, Felicity turned back to her burger, ignoring him. She felt, rather than heard him standing up behind her.

"Hey, I'm just teasing. For what it's worth, I'm really happy that you found Oliver."

"Really?"

She glanced over her shoulder to see his expression had turned serious. "Of course. Things might've been a little rough between us lately but I'm glad he has you now. He needs something good in his life."

"Thank you. Does this mean that you and he are okay now, too?"

He shrugged, shoving his hands into his pockets. "I guess so. I mean, I get why he lied. I just… we always used to tell each other everything. Literally everything."

"He's not the same person you knew, Tommy, and he's been through a lot. Give him time, he'll get there."

Tommy nodded thoughtfully, but Felicity saw the shift in his expression, back to the playful person he'd been a few moments ago. She recognised it for what it was, an attempt to hide just how uncomfortable he was with the topic. "So… you're helping him now?"

"Sort of. I'm just doing some upgrades to his computer system, because honestly, his old one was painful to see."

He laughed, but it was stilted, almost forced. His eyes, though, were firmly fixed on hers. "You'll be careful though, right? What he's doing is dangerous and I don't want you to get caught up in that."

"I'm not in any danger down here, Tommy. This place is secure. And I certainly don't plan to take any criminals on in combat."

Drawing in a deep breath, Tommy nodded. He reached out for her hand again, but instead of shaking it, he brought it to his lips, kissing the back of her knuckles gently. "My brother is a lucky guy."

"Uh… thank you."

"Well, I guess I should get going."

As he turned towards the stairs, he smiled back at her, and it reminded her of exactly how she came to have a crush on him in the first place. "I'll see you on Monday, Smoak. Don't be late."

She threw him a mock salute. "Wouldn't dream of it, boss."

As she watched him leave, part of her wondered what would've happened if she'd been able to go through with the wedding. She knew deep down that it would've ended badly, relationships built on a lie rarely lasted. But she truly hoped that Tommy found someone he could love, he deserved it.

* * *

Standing in front of the full-length mirror in her bedroom, Felicity growled at herself. She'd been at this for over an hour now and nothing seemed to feel right. How was she supposed to feel confident going to a dinner with Oliver's family when she couldn't even find a dress decent enough to wear?

"You're overthinking it, honey," Oliver whispered into her ear, making her jump slightly. She hadn't even heard him come into the room. He was scarily quiet for a man his size.

"Maybe." She let out a sigh and leaned back into him. "Everything okay at the club?"

"Uh, yeah. Everything is perfect. Just the way it should be."

Puzzled by his serious response, she flashed him a bemused smile. "You were gone a while."

"I had something that I needed to do."

If Felicity didn't know any better, she could swear that he was avoiding looking at her. Well, his eyes roamed her body, but they never met hers. She'd finished her work on his system earlier than planned, but since Oliver was still working, she'd decided to go home alone.

After spending most of the afternoon searching for something to wear, and trying not to let her nerves get the best of her, Felicity was exhausted. And she still had a dinner to get through. "Are you sure you're okay? You seem… distracted."

His answering smile was almost blinding. As his eyes finally connected with hers, the depth of emotion she saw there stole her breath. He looked at her as if she was the answer to every question he'd ever had. "I've never been better, Felicity."

She studied his face for a moment, trying to gauge whether that was the truth. But he seemed happy, nothing appeared to be bothering him, so she let it drop. "What time do we have to be at your mother's? Assuming, of course, that I can actually find something to wear that is 'Queen Mansion' appropriate."

He snaked an arm around her waist, leaning his chin on her shoulder as he gazed at their reflection in the mirror. "Whatever you wear will be perfect, because you're perfect."

She rolled her eyes. "Okay, that was cheesy." Turning her head, she kissed his cheek. "But thank you."

He chuckled, his breath tickling her cheek. "Seriously though, my mother isn't going to care what dress you decide to wear. She just wants to see _you_."

Felicity bit down on her lower lip as Oliver's hands started wandering over her skin. Standing in her bra and panties probably wasn't such a good idea when they had to be at the mansion fairly soon.

"Don't you think you should get ready, too?" she asked, her breath catching when he flattened his palm out across her stomach, drawing her body back against his. She felt the muscles flex against her back, the broad expanse of his chest cushioning her entire frame.

Her eyelids fluttered shut when his lips dropped to her neck. That was unfair and he knew it. How was she supposed to think when he did that? "Oliver?"

"Don't worry," he whispered, kissing his way down her shoulder. "We have plenty of time. Besides, we're celebrating."

"Celebrating what?" she asked breathily.

"Your promotion. Tommy told me all about it." He raised his head to look at her reflection. "I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks, though I wonder how much of that had to do with Alex and the fact that I'm dating you."

Oliver shook his head and returned to his previous task. "Tommy wouldn't give you that job unless you were perfect for it. And you are, Felicity. You know that."

She shivered as Oliver slipped a finger beneath her bra strap and slowly slid it down her shoulder, replacing it with his soft lips. "I hope so."

"I know so. Now can you please pay attention when I'm trying to seduce you?"

She giggled and laced her fingers through his. "Oh, I'm so sorry. Please, continue."

"Hmm," he mumbled against her skin. "Peaches."

* * *

The mansion seemed bigger to Felicity as she and Oliver walked up the steps towards the front door. She'd never really taken the time to appreciate just how large it was. Or how intimidating. She'd tried so hard to keep her nerves at bay on the drive over, but now that they were standing on the threshold, they threatened to overpower her completely.

This would be the first time she saw Moira, Thea, and Walter since her fake wedding rehearsal. And although Oliver had reassured her several times that his family held no grudge, she couldn't rid herself of the anxiety.

"Felicity," Oliver murmured beside her. "Breathe, honey."

She looked down at her clothes, pulling the lapels of her coat tighter together with a grimace. "Are you sure this dress is okay? I told you we should've gotten ready earlier. Not that I am complaining about the sex, which was great, by the way. But I don't feel that this is-"

Oliver cut her off by placing a hand on her cheek, drawing her gaze to his. "The dress is amazing. You look stunning. Which pains me, because I now have to sit down to a meal with my family and try not to think of all the ways I want to peel you out of it later."

Felicity shivered as his words sunk in. She knew what he was doing, but the distraction wasn't working. Well, not completely anyway, she was only human after all. "I don't think I can do this, Oliver."

"You can, I promise you that it's going to be fine. Besides, if we don't do this now, when do we do it? It has to happen eventually if we're going to be together, right?"

He was right, she knew it, and she hated it. "I'm being ridiculous, aren't I?"

He let out a soft chuckle, leaning forward to kiss her forehead. "No, it just shows how much you care. It's one of the many things that I love most about you."

Tilting her face upwards, she captured his lips in quick, chaste kiss. It centred her, helped her to focus on why she was here. She would do anything for the man she loved. "Thank you."

Stepping back, he adjusted his tie and then reached for the door handle. "You ready?"

Pressing her lips together, she inhaled deeply through her nose and nodded. "As I'll ever be."

**_To Be Continued..._**


	13. Chapter 13

_**A/N: **_So I had planned to update this last week, but I ran into some technical difficulties. Namely...deleting half of what I'd written, spending so much time trying to get it back, only to have to rewrite it again. Annoyed doesn't begin to cover it. But here it is guys, the penultimate chapter. Next one is the final one. This one is so fluffy it may give you cavities, but I really hope you all enjoy :D

**_Chapter Thirteen_**

Oliver took her by the hand as they walked inside the mansion, and she noticed that his was shaking more than hers was. Was he nervous too? If so, why, this was his family? Maybe he was just reacting to her anxiousness, which didn't really help her relax.

The foyer was emptier than she remembered. Without all the Christmas decorations and trees, it looked a little less welcoming. Still beautiful but a lot more daunting.

_Relax, you're fine. They don't hate you. But they might not like you as much anymore either. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. _

She tried to push down those thoughts, to stop the churning in her stomach when she saw the Queen matriarch appear in the doorway to the living room. Her fingers tightened around Oliver's when Thea and Walter also appeared, standing either side of Moira.

She felt him squeeze her hand in reassurance as they walked over to them.

"Oliver, I'm so happy you could finally grace us with your presence," Moira said, grinning.

Oliver shrugged and leaned in to kiss his mother's cheek. "I was here this morning; I can't help it if you weren't, Mom."

Moira chuckled, and then Felicity felt her entire body freeze when her gaze turned to her. She'd never felt as small in her life as the older woman studied her.

"Felicity, it's so good to see you again," she said with a little shake of her head that made her perfectly styled locks swing around her face, framing it just right.

"Yeah, we've missed you," Thea said with a grin.

It was the smiles that did it, the floodgates opened and Felicity was powerless to stop what was coming. "Mrs Queen, Thea, Walter, I'm so, _so, _sorry for everything that happened. I never wanted to hurt anyone, I swear. I was just… I got in way over my head and I didn't know how to fix it, and-"

Moira stepped forward to take Felicity's free hand. The other still had a death grip on Oliver's. "Felicity, there is no need to apologise. I understand, sweetheart."

Felicity felt like she couldn't get enough air into her lungs as she tried to take a deep breath. "How do you not hate me right now?"

Her question surprised Moira, Thea too. "We don't hate you, Felicity. I don't think there's a person in this world that even could. I will admit that I was… disappointed, for a short time. Maybe a little angry as well. But Tommy and I discussed it, and we both came to the same conclusion."

Felicity swallowed hard. "Which was?"

Moira's smile turned sympathetic as she smoothed her hand down Felicity's shoulder-length hair. "That you were unhappy. I hope you don't mind my observation on that. But I don't believe that you ever had bad intentions, you're too good a person for that."

"Wow. Uh… I don't really know what to say, Moira. Thank you."

Still holding onto her hand, Moira patted the back of it lightly. "You can relax, dear. Please, I want you to feel comfortable here."

_Easier said than done,_ she thought. She nodded gingerly, letting out a silent breath of relief when Moira released her and stepped back to hold her husband's hand. Thea took advantage of the opening and practically threw herself at Felicity.

"I'm so glad you're here, Felicity. I've really missed having you around."

Felicity glanced up at Oliver, who was watching the scene unfold with a warm smile and misty eyes. She let go of his hand in order to hug Thea back properly. "I missed you too, Thea."

"Do I get a hug too?" Tommy asked from behind them. Felicity turned to see him lounging against the front door, arms crossed, and a huge grin lighting up his face.

Moira clasped a hand to her chest, making Felicity freeze for a moment. Was she having chest pains? The guilt she'd been trying to let go reared its ugly head again. Had she been the cause of Moira's chest pains recently? Oliver had mentioned she'd been seeing her doctor more lately.

But no, Moira was smiling, her eyes flitting between all three of her children.

"Mom? Are you okay?" Oliver asked, taking a step towards her.

She waved him off as she dabbed her eyes with the handkerchief Walter handed her. "I'm fine, sweetheart. All my children are here, you're all well and happy. My entire family in one room, it's perfect."

Felicity smiled when Moira's eyes connected with hers on the last part of her sentence. She considered her part of her family? Well, that was just… a little overwhelming. But heart-warming all the same.

After giving his sister a quick hug, Tommy turned his attention to Felicity, a cheeky smile pulling at his lips. "Well see, now that you're part of the family, a hug is mandatory."

Felicity felt the laughter bubble up from deep inside her, and just like that, the tension was gone. She felt the weight lift from her shoulders as Tommy wrapped his arms around her.

"Thank you," she whispered in his ear. When he pulled back, his expression was a little more serious. He nodded, somehow knowing exactly what she was thanking him for, and then he released her.

"Okay then, now that we're all here, I think it's time to eat." Walter announced in his charming English accent. "I don't know about you, my dear, but I am ravenous." He held his elbow out to escort his wife into the dining room, and honestly, it was the sweetest thing Felicity had ever seen.

Or at least it was, until Oliver sidled up next to her, holding out his own arm. She chuckled, linking hers through his, and then she practically melted when he leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on her temple.

"See? I told you there was nothing to worry about."

Felicity glanced around the dining room, warmth spreading through her chest as she looked at the happy faces of those around her.

* * *

"Felicity, you have got to try this pie!" Thea said, holding the plate over the table.

Felicity held a hand up and slumped back in her chair. "No, thank you. I am going to burst if I eat another thing." She winced. "Ugh, I am going to have to live at the gym for an entire week to burn all this off."

Thea rolled her eyes. "Oh please, you look great. Doesn't she, Ollie?"

When he didn't respond right away, Felicity glanced to her left to see him staring at her with an expression she couldn't quite read. He seemed to be studying her, though what he was looking for, she had no idea. She could practically hear how hard he was thinking, and she'd give anything to know what was going through his mind. He'd been acting strange ever since he'd returned from the club earlier. And she was still clueless as to why.

Then he blinked, and it was almost as if he'd snapped back to reality and was right back with them. He let out a soft chuckle. "Sorry, Thea. What did you say?"

"Oh brother," Tommy mumbled, leaning in to whisper something in Thea's ear. She burst out laughing before slapping a hand over her mouth.

"You two done?" Oliver asked, his amusement barely hidden under his glare.

Tommy cleared his throat. "Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt the heart eyes you were making at Felicity. Please, continue."

Felicity's cheeks suddenly felt a little too hot as Moira and Walter started chuckling too.

"Tommy," Oliver warned.

"What? I think it's nice. Maybe not over the dinner table, cos you know, we're eating and there's only so much sugar a guy can handle, you know? But, go you."

Oliver opened his mouth to respond but Moira beat him to it. "Oliver, why don't you give Felicity a tour of the gardens? She hasn't seen them yet and they're so beautiful with all the snow right now."

Moira's eyes twinkled as she looked at her son, and again, Felicity had the strange sense that she was missing something.

"Actually, that's a great idea," he said turning to look at her. "What do you say?"

With an amused frown, she placed her napkin down next to her plate. "Sure, that sounds nice."

And honestly, even though the Queens had been nothing but nice, she wanted a little alone time with Oliver. She felt like she'd barely said two words to him since they'd entered the house.

Oliver smiled as he stood up, a real big smile that lit up his face. It seemed strange to Felicity, because this was not the big, brooding vigilante guy she'd come to know. She wasn't complaining, definitely not, but still, it was a little weird.

He swiftly moved to pull her chair back as she rose; placing a gentle hand on the small of her back once she was by his side. "Shall we?"

Felicity shook her head and laughed. "By all means, lead the way."

Feeling a little giddy with all the attention, Felicity let Oliver loop her arm through his and lead her out of the dining room. He quickly grabbed their coats, helped her into hers, and then took her hand in his.

"Oliver," she said, feeling a little stab of guilt as they crossed through the sunroom where everything had happened between her and the Queens. "What's going on?"

As if sensing her trepidation, Oliver tightened his fingers around hers and threw her a wink. "Do you trust me, Felicity?"

"You know I do," she answered without hesitation. "But you're acting… not yourself."

He shrugged and grinned as he led her to the large patio doors at the back of the room. "I'm more myself than I've been in years, honey."

As soon as they stepped out onto the patio, Felicity froze. The garden, if it could even be called that, was huge. Stretching out as far as the eye could see, and then some. But the thing that stole her breath was the way it looked blanketed in a thick layer of pure white snow. It was stunning.

Oliver tugged gently on her hand, and she followed silently, her wide eyes taking in every rose bush, every tall oak tree, and all the flowers that she couldn't even name that lined the property. She wondered how Moira managed to have so many colours going on in the middle of winter, but now didn't seem like the time to ask. Oliver seemed to be on some kind of mission, he had such a serious face, but there was an excitement practically radiating off him.

"You're very quiet," she said, nudging him with her elbow. "I thought a tour of the garden would come with a little more narrating."

He smiled down at her. "Sorry, I'm just… I have a lot on my mind right now."

"Anything I can help with?"

Oliver paused for a moment, looking down at her with that same expression that made her wonder what was going through his mind. If it wasn't for the little twinkle in his eyes, she would seriously be worrying that he was about to break up with her.

His lips were cold as he leaned forward and pressed them to her forehead, lingering for a second, before pulling back. "Close your eyes."

"Excuse me?"

His smile widened. "Please, Felicity, I have a surprise."

She studied him, suspicion coursing through her, but he looked so… happy. It warmed her heart to know that she was part of the reason that he was slowly learning to let go of the demons that had plagued him since his return from the island. She wasn't naïve enough to think that he could be cured in a few weeks, or ever really. But that didn't matter. She loved him, no matter what.

So she shrugged, closed her eyes, and held onto his hands tightly. Peeking one open, she pinned him with a look. "Okay, but if I slip in this snow, I'm suing you."

Rolling his eyes, he raised their joined right hands and tapped her on the tip of her nose. "When have I ever let anything happen to you?"

"I'm just saying."

"Don't worry, I've got you. Now, come on, it's not much further."

With a patient sigh, she allowed him to guide her down the little path. However, not being able to see anything, combined with the fact that there was a lot of snow to slip on made her nervous. And Oliver's silence was really starting to get to her now.

"Can I open them yet?"

He pulled her a little further forward, the heat from his palms seeping into hers, warming them, and then he stopped.

"Okay, you can open them now."

She wasn't sure what she'd been expecting but this wasn't it. They were standing in a circular patio area, the edges lined with bushes that she couldn't name, and a few beautiful antique-looking wooden benches. In the centre, there was a small fountain, its water already iced over, covered in a layer of snow.

A large pergola framed the entire patio, and each beam had twinkling lights wrapped around them, giving the whole area a soothing glow.

"Oh, Oliver… it's beautiful," she said, taking everything in.

Still holding onto her hands, Oliver smoothed his thumbs over the back of them. "This is my mother's favourite place. She loves to sit here, listening to the birds in the trees, reading a book or whatever else. It soothes her."

This was clearly a special place for Moira, and Felicity got the feeling that it was for Oliver, too. There was something in his tone, something almost reverent.

He glanced around at the lights. "So many things have happened here. I used to sit out here with my mom sometimes when I was in school. Not exactly a special memory but when she was helping me with my homework and it was just the two of us, it was…"

Felicity smiled softly as he shook his head. "It was special, Oliver."

"This was where I learned that I was going to be a big brother, too. Mom and Dad sat me down on that bench over there, and told me that Tommy and I were getting a little brother or sister."

The adoration in his eyes told Felicity that _that_ was something that would stay with him forever. "You're lucky to have those memories to cherish."

He brought his attention back to her, a small frown appearing. She didn't want to bring her own memories up, so she raised herself up to kiss him. His hands came up to cup her face, warming it instantly, as she tucked hers into his jacket and around his back.

"Felicity." Her name left his lips on a whisper, before he kissed her again.

Slowly, she pulled back, revelling in the fact that it took a good two or three seconds for him to open his eyes. To know that she had that much of an effect on him was intoxicating.

He cleared his throat and stepped back a little, taking both her hands in his. "I was hoping to create a new memory here, tonight."

"Oliver, it's far too cold for sex."

"That's…" he paused as a bark of laughter erupted. "That's not exactly what I was going for."

"Oh good, because I would be worried about things freezing and… you know what? Never mind. What were you going to say?"

He pressed her right hand against his chest, right over his heart and she could feel it beating so fast. She wanted to ask what was bothering him so much, but his eyes held onto hers, drawing her deep into their warmth, and refusing to let go.

"Felicity," he whispered, closing his eyes as if drumming up the courage to speak. "Before I met you, I had a plan. I was going to do things differently. I was going to _be_ different."

Felicity frowned, both curious and slightly worried about where he was heading with this.

"I was fine on my mission to protect the city, to do it alone. I knew what I had to do. But the second I saw you, wandering the halls here and looking so lost… it all changed. There was just something about you."

She watched his little smile grow as he relived the memory. "You were just so adorable. Of course, I was highly suspicious of you-"

"Rightly so," she interjected.

"But that didn't mean that I didn't see you. Yes, I was suspicious, but as I got to know you, I realised that I wanted to know more. Not for Tommy, but for me. Because I… because I was attracted to you. And I didn't want to admit that to myself but it was there."

She found herself thinking back to all of their interactions, a fond smile on her face, when something occurred to her. "So, all of those questions at the hospital. Were they _all_ really about making sure I was who I said I was?"

His expression stayed the same, except for a tiny flicker in his eyes. "What do you mean? Of course they were. That was at the height of my suspicion."

"Uh-huh," she muttered, leaning in closer. "So not one of those questions was because maybe you were jealous?"

"I do not get jealous, Felicity." She raised her eyebrows, but stayed silent. Eventually, it had the effect she wanted.

"Okay, fine. Maybe I was a little jealous." Then he switched the tables on her, and pulled her so close that she was flush up against him. "But it was your fault. I couldn't stand the idea that you were with Tommy. It nagged at me, taunted me."

He frowned, and she didn't like it. "But then Tommy asked me to be his best man. And I felt like someone had punched me in the stomach. I knew I was being ridiculous, you weren't mine, and I had no claim over you. I mean, I wasn't supposed to want you."

"When?"

She knew her question had surprised him when his frown grew deeper. Unable to resist, she reached out to smooth over the crinkle above his nose with her thumb. "Hmm?"

"When did you know?"

He pressed his lips together as he thought about it. "The day you fainted when we gave blood at the hospital, I knew there was something special about you. But it wasn't until I drove you home that night I allowed myself to feel it. To really feel it. I knew then that I was in trouble. Because I couldn't stay away from you."

Felicity's heart swelled so much she felt like it might burst right out of her chest. She knew that he loved her, but hearing him admit when he'd actually fallen for her, it touched her deeply. She reached up and cupped his cheek. "I felt the same way."

"Really? That night?"

She nodded, a small chuckle bubbling up inside her. "Actually, it was when we fell over and you ripped your pants."

Oliver groaned and dropped his forehead to her shoulder. She laughed and stroked the hair at the nape of his neck. "I had never laughed that hard before in my life."

"It was… not my finest moment," he grumbled into her coat.

She placed her hands on his cheeks and gently tipped his head back to look in his eyes. "That was when I knew that I was falling in love with you."

She saw that love reflected in his eyes, and she had always prided herself on being the kind of girl not to fall all over a guy. To depend on herself because that was who she was raised to be. But right now, she was happy to be that girl, because Oliver made her _that_ happy.

Drawing both of her hands back into his, Oliver tilted his head and gave her a look that she couldn't quite read. Before she could ask what was going through his mind, he lowered himself down to one knee, and Felicity felt her world tilt for a second.

"Felicity Smoak-"

"Oliver-"

"Get the ring out you idiot!" Felicity heard Thea's hushed voice from behind the bushes. Leaning to her left, she saw Oliver's entire family standing at the entrance to the patio watching the events unfold. Walter, Moira, and Diggle stood at the back, with Tommy and Thea in front of them.

_Oh boy. A family affair._ As if she wasn't nervous enough. _And when did Diggle get here?_

"Thea, be quiet," Tommy hissed. "He's proposing, let him do it."

"I _am_ letting him do it!" she replied, and if Felicity hadn't been in shock, she would've laughed when Tommy let out an 'oomph' as Thea elbowed him in the ribs.

Oliver rolled his eyes, but then reached into his jacket pocket, and Felicity couldn't stop the gasp that escaped her when she saw the little dark green velvet box appear.

"Felicity," Oliver said, his voice cracking a little. "I know that we've only known each other for a short time, but I don't need longer to find out what I already know. I have never loved anyone the way that I love you."

_It's too soon, isn't it? _She didn't know what to do.

"My life just wouldn't be the same without you in it, I hope you know that."

A quiet sniffle from Moira made him pause for a second, and as she glanced up, Felicity saw her tearing up.

"I love you too, Oliver."

His lips tipped up into a small smile, but she could feel his hand begin to shake. "Felicity Smoak-"

"Ohhh, this is it!" Thea whispered, not as quietly as she'd apparently meant to, leading Tommy to ssh her again.

This was torture. She couldn't stand the butterflies doing a rumba in her stomach any longer. So, ignoring the snow, she dropped down onto her knees in front of him.

Oliver took a deep breath and then let it out slowly. "Will you marry me, Felicity?"

Her eyes ticked up towards his family. A family that had taken her in as soon as they'd met her. She would be lucky to be a part of that. She _had _been a part of that, and it was wonderful. All of her worries about the family being angry, or not as accepting of her anymore, disappeared the second she saw the happy tears in Moira's eyes. That was the look of a woman who loved her son so much, and she just wanted what was best for him.

Then she looked back at the man she loved. At the nervous apprehension in his eyes, the short, spiky hair that she loved to run her fingers through, and the cute little mole just below his lip. Everything about him was perfect, and yet, he wasn't perfect. He still had many issues to deal with, but he would no longer be doing it alone. She would be there for him, every step of the way. And now, he wanted to marry her.

There was no choice to make.

"Yes," she whispered.

Oliver's eyebrows shot up. "Really? Because I know that it might seem a little fast but-"

She grabbed his face in her hands. "Hey, listen to me. I _want_ to marry you, Oliver. I want to be your wife."

If she'd thought the smile he'd been wearing earlier was bright, it was practically dazzling now. His entire face just lit up as he placed his hands over hers, pressing them against his cheeks. His lips touched hers briefly before he remembered the ring and, with trembling fingers, he carefully pried the box open.

Felicity's jaw dropped when she saw the ring. It was… exquisite. She'd never seen anything so beautiful before, it was almost a little scary. That thing had to be worth a pretty penny. "Oh my God, Oliver it's…"

"This was my grandmother's ring," he replied, taking it out of its rich green velvet lining.

"It's beautiful."

She pinched her lips together as he laid her left hand flat against his palm. It took him a couple of tries to actually get the ring on her finger since his were still shaking. But once it was on, Felicity felt like it belonged there. There was just something so right about it.

The twinkling lights reflected in the small cluster of diamonds, making it sparkle. It was breath-taking.

"Oh my God, he did it!" she heard Thea squeal, the sound muffled as she pressed a fist to her mouth.

Looking up, Felicity felt the tears gather when she saw the look in Oliver's eyes. So much love and adoration. But there was something else there too. He looked like a man who, up until this moment, truly believed that he would never have this in his life. After everything he'd been through, he still didn't believe that he was worthy of being loved.

That broke her heart. But it also made her even more determined to make him see just how much she loved and cherished him. "I love you, Oliver, so much."

The way he was looking at her told her everything she needed to know. In that moment, he was… well, he was beautiful.

"I love you, too." He wrapped his arms around her waist so tightly, burying his face into her neck as she did the same.

"I do have a question though."

He chuckled. "You wouldn't be you if you didn't."

"When did you plan all of this?"

He breathed in deeply, tightening his arms around her, cocooning her in his warmth. "This afternoon."

She giggled, running her fingers through his hair. "Ah, so when you were supposed to be working at the club, you were here…"

"Yeah. I wanted it to be special."

"Oh, it definitely is," she agreed.

Silence descended as they both took a few moments to just breathe each other in. Foreheads touching, eyes closed, Felicity's chest ached with the torrent of emotion she felt.

However, the snow soon made its presence known. "Hey, Oliver? Do you think we can get up now? I can't feel my knees."

He laughed at that, and drew back, placing a lingering kiss on her lips. With a happy sigh, he stood up, pulling her up along with him. "Thank you, Felicity."

She cupped his cheek and gently smoothed her thumb over his eyebrow. "You never have to thank me, Oliver."

"Can we come over now, guys?" Thea yelled, ignoring Moira's attempt to hush her. "The anticipation is killing me and I'm freezing out here."

Oliver pecked her gently on the lips one more time, and then turned around. "Yeah, come on, Speedy."

He'd barely gotten the nickname out before she came barrelling over, hitting him with an attack hug that rocked him backwards.

"I'm so happy for you guys!" she sniffled into his jacket.

Oliver dropped a kiss on the top of her head, his eyes never once leaving Felicity's. "Thank you, Thea."

Moira appeared in front of her, smiling widely with tears now running down her cheeks. "Congratulations, Felicity. I'm so happy; I can't even begin to tell you."

Hugging the woman who would soon become her mother-in-law, for real this time, Felicity suddenly found herself shaking. This was it, this was her moment. All the years spent alone, wondering if that was all life had to offer her, was worth it, because she now had what she'd always wanted.

"I couldn't wish for a better daughter-in-law," Moira whispered in her ear.

"Oh, Moira. Thank you so much."

Moira stepped back and reached out to wipe her tears away. "I've never seen my son this happy before. Even before the island. I was worried when he returned, that he might never be the same. But since you've come into his life, I've seen him grow and seeing him so in love just fills my heart with such joy."

Despite the cold, Felicity felt her cheeks start to warm up from Moira's praise. She wondered if she would ever get used to that. "Well he's changed me, too. Knowing him is the best part of my life."

"I have no doubt that the two of you will be so happy together."

"Moira, you've been so amazing through all of this, and I just wanted to thank-"

Moira held a hand up. "No, Felicity. No gratitude is required here. You are a part of my family now. What's in the past should stay in the past, okay? It's time to look forward to the future."

Felicity nodded. "Okay."

With a kiss to her cheek, Moira squeezed Felicity's shoulder and then moved to stand by Walter's side.

"Didn't I tell you it would all work out in the end?" Diggle's voice said behind her.

She inhaled deeply as she turned to face him, letting him wrap her up in his giant frame. "You did. Although, I'm not exactly sure that it was a safe bet. Too many variables."

"Nah, I could see how crazy that boy is for you, Felicity. I don't think this would've ended any other way."

His laughter rumbled deep in his chest, right against her ear. "I'm so glad I met you Digg."

"Me too," he said seriously, grasping her shoulders lightly to push her back so he could look at her. "You deserve to be happy, Felicity. And that man right there, he adores you. We all do."

Felicity glanced over at her fiancé, smiling as she watched him and Tommy exchange a handshake and then a hug. Things definitely seemed to be improving between them, and she knew that if they were both willing, they could get their old relationship and bond back.

As the rest of the family all offered their congratulations and hugs, Oliver's eyes met Felicity's. He looked so at peace right then.

As for her, she already knew that she'd found the one she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. It was crazy, she knew that, to love someone so much after such a short time, and yet somehow know that he was _it_ for her. But she was okay with it.

For the first time in a long time, Felicity looked at her future, and she was no longer afraid.

_**To Be Continued...**_


End file.
